Road to Tomorrow
by DancingtilSunset
Summary: Takes place a year after Apocalypse is defeated. Someone is kidnapping mutants. How will Rogue, the newly joined Remy, and the xmen handle this new enemy bent on experimenting on them. ROMY
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the X-men

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Okay, so here is my story. Please let me know what you think. I welcome positive criticism. Oh . . . and sorry editing is not my strong point. I hope you enjoy

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The sun slowly rose to welcome in a cool fall morning on the Institute. Everyone was still asleep since it was six in the morning on a Saturday . . . well, everyone except one. Rogue was wide awake and had been for a while. It seemed that her dreams would not allow for a full night's sleep. She sat on her bed with her knees pulled up to her chest in the dark with only the filtering light from the rising sun to illuminate her room. Yes, her room. After having Kitty as roommate for years she finally had a room to herself. Rogue liked to think of it as more intimate than small. It was simple and reflected her now more mature style. She loved her queen-sized bed with her black soft comforter. Her favorite part of her room was the small balcony.

It had been a little over a year since they had defeated Apocalypse. Her senior year had been a breeze in comparison and she had graduated from high school with not only a few small fights started by people who hated mutants to tarnish her record. She was even taking some college classes online in addition to help train the younger kids at the Institute. She planned to become a teacher since the Professor was looking to expand on faculty and she frankly loved her home . . . even if she pretended otherwise sometimes. Little else had changed since their big battle though. Life was calmer and other than an increase in anti-mutant activity it was downright peaceful.

Dragging herself out of bed, Rogue approached her dresser for some clothes. She stripped her black sleeping tank top and blue and black plaid boxers in exchange for a pair of plain black jeans and a long sleeved v-necked cotton shirt. Looking in the mirror she could not help but take a small mental note in the changes. Overall she was leaner in some places while new curves had appeared where they had not been before. Her hair was only a little longer than a year ago and reached barely past her shoulders. It was still her typical brown with white "stripes". She was still fair skinned, but she had toned down the makeup. Less goth and more like a typical eighteen year old; simple reddish lipstick and simple back eyeliner. Sighing, Rogue headed towards her mahogany desk where her black gloves waited. Some things never changed; like her poisonous touch. Before leaving, Rogue completed her morning ritual, which was to open the back music box with red roses on it and played a German lullaby. It had been a birthday present form Kirk for her last birthday. The box only held one item inside: a queen of hearts card. Her fingers graced the smooth plastic like surface of the card before closing the lid.

Rogue was not quite sure why she had kept it. She probably should have thrown it out immediately, but for some reason she just could not bring herself to do it. Just like she could not abandon him from her mind, and it was not because she had absorbed him once. He plagued her in both waking moments and in her dreams. When she woke up with a racing heart and sweaty palms it was because he had sauntered into one of her dreams. They were always the same . . . his lips on hers while his hands explored her naked body. He was always clothed, but she was _always_ naked. Just thinking about it made her body flush with heat and her stomach turn with fear. It was funny how you could feel two opposing things at the same time.

Leaving her room, Rogue walked the dark and silent halls of the Institute heading towards the kitchen. She was actually grateful for the lack of sleep. It would mean that she could eat breakfast in peace without the typical chaos of many mutant kids fighting over food. The tiled kitchen floor was cold against her sock covered feet. Silently, she went through the ritual of making coffee. Once that was well on its way she contemplated what to eat. The idea of being blinded by the refrigerator light was unpleasant, so Rogue opted for pop-tarts. She always kept a box hidden in the back of the cupboard in a large can of wheat germ. No one had ever touched her can of "wheat germ" since she started hiding food in it years ago. When you live with hungry boys a girl has to get creative. After retrieving her beloved raspberry pop-tart, Rogue sat down at the kitchen table and soaked in the silence.

"Morning stripes," Logan said while pushing open the kitchen door open. Rogue smiled at him not at all surprised by his presence. Logan seemed to never sleep.

"Mornin" she said back. She watched as Logan went to his hiding spot in the hanging light fixture to pull out a bottle of bourbon . . . his version of coffee. Logan had never bothered to hide his secret from her, since he knew she was not dumb enough to take any. She was quite certain she was the only one who knew of the hidden bourbon . . . well the Professor probably knew too. Taking a coffee mug from the cabinet Logan poured himself a healthy dose of liquor before returning the bottle to its resting place. "You coming on the trip today kid?" he suddenly asked after a sip from his cup.

"Ah am . . . help you keep an eye on the newbies," she responded while rising to retrieve a cup of finished coffee. She wondered if the day would come when Logan would stop referring her to a kid. Probably never, Rogue mused as she took a sip of her black coffee. That's how she liked it . . . black with a few spoons of sugar.

"You okay kid?" Logan asked suddenly concerned.

"Ah'm fine. Don't worry bout meh," she lied and took a bite of her pop-tart. From the long huff that he made, Rogue doubted Logan believed her. However, apparently Logan decided not to push it. She silently prayed the day would run smoothly and hopefully void of accidental use of power in public. She, Logan, and Storm were talking a bunch of the new kids to some science museum. The professor had asked her to tag along as an extra hand to make sure nothing happened.

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Remy LeBeau was not the kind of man to pine for a woman. He was actually quite the opposite. He was the kind who could barely remember the name of the leggy girl he was with. However, somehow the rules had changed. It all started the first time his eyes laid their sights on her emerald green ones. From that moment on he was hooked. He tried to deny it and pretend it was not her he thought about while kissing some nameless girl in a bar. Remy had watched her with a sort of obsessive fascination. He had seen her pain and had known her desire to escape. Then he had . . . well she called it kidnap, but he preferred to think of it as convincing her to take a break from her life. His motivation had not been exactly pure, but in the end she had sort of forgiven him enough to help him free his father and not let the wolf man skewer him alive. He had not expected to enjoy her company during their trip to New Orleans. He could not even explain why he had given her the card.

After their departure, he had tried to put her out of his mind. Remy had almost half-convinced himself that she meant nothing to him. That was until he found out her and the other X-men had tangled with Apocalypse. He had been at a dark and sleazy bar when he saw it on the news. He had recognized a few of her friends as they flashed on across the screen. His heart had twisted in his chest and he prayed for her safety. He hoped she was not in that battle, but he knew it was in vain. When the fight was over Remy did the one thing he never thought he would do . . . he snuck onto the Institute grounds and not for an attack or to steal something. No, he was there to look for her under the cover of night. It did not take him long to figure out what room window was hers . . . well hers and that skinny brunette. He had felt overwhelmingly relieved to see that she was fine and in one piece.

From there he had taken to the road and moved around from place to play restlessly. Nothing seemed to sooth the overwhelming feeling that he was not where he belonged. He had even tried to drown those feelings in booze and women. It seemed though that he could not so much as kiss a pretty girl without her face coming to mind, and liquor only intensified the images of her. When he was drunk he could hear her sexy southern accent clear as a bell in his mind. So, Remy, being a man of reasonable intelligence got on his motorcycle and headed back to Bayville. He scaled the wrought iron fence and found her new room. Just like before it was easy to find her.

This new room was even better since there was a tree smack dead center to the window. It was far enough to prevent him from being seen, but close enough that he had good view. In that tree was exactly where he was at the moment. Remy had been watching her sleep and was surprised when she bolted up in bed suddenly gasping for air and roughly running her fingers through those beautiful locks. He had almost been alarmed enough to move from his spot and go to her, but after a moment she seemed to be fine. He watched her as she sat in her bed obviously deep in thought. He was not certain how much time passed while he marveled at her exposed shoulders and wondered how smooth her skin would feel against his fingers. Of course that was not allowed. He could never touch her . . . Remy LeBeau, the ladies man had fallen for an untouchable girl . . . the Rogue. If it was only her body that captivated him he could have walked away a long time ago.

He was jostled from thoughts when he saw movement in her room. She stood from her bed and the sight took his breath away. She was more gorgeous then the last time he had seen her and had shed her more adolescent body for the budding body of a woman. She was deliciously curvy in all the right places. Then he stared trance-like as she began lifting her shirt over her head. Remy quickly looked down. He was a gentleman after all, but after a moment curiously got the better of him as he stole a quick look. So, she liked black lacy thongs . . . and he could not help but smile. He was almost sad when she began covering up that lovely skin of hers. She bustled about her room while he watched. The last thing she did before leaving was to open a box on her dresser. Remy waited until he was certain she would not return before jumping down from his branch and quickly scaled her walls and onto her balcony.

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Okay. So what did you think. I know there is not a lot of diologue, but there will be next chapter. What is Remy up to? Well you'll find out next chapter. So, please go and review.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own x-men

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ChamberlinofMusic : thanks. I'm happy you like it

gambitfan85 : thank you

Temari's Angle : thanks

jadeDino : thank you, and yes romy forever!

ShannaK : thanks. I do have a plan for this story so I promise I am not wirtting aimlessly. I hope you continue to enjoy this story.

To everyone who reviewed thank you for taking the time to write something. I really appreicate it.

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Perhaps he had finally gone insane . . . that certainly explained why Remy was crouched in Rogue's room. He could almost still feel her presence in the room as if she left a part of herself behind, but that was not too surprising. After all, she lived there so it only made sense the place was charged with her energy. It even smelled like her . . . vanilla and spice. Rising from his stance, Remy dared to venture in further. He glided around the bed and headed towards her desk. It was that box that had his interest peaked. The thief in him was just itching to learn what treasures laid inside, not that he would take it even if the item was priceless. However, peeking inside that box would be like opening a window into her soul.

His gloved fingers had only brushed the lid softly when a voice in his head made him top dead in his tracks. _'Mr. LeBeau, I would like to have a word with you in my office' _the voice said. Okay so, he had definitely gone insane. The voice even sounded vaguely familiar. _'I'm afraid that you cannot communicate back with me. Something about your powers blocks me from reading your mind. I know your location and I will guide you to where I am. Don't worry no one will see you, and I guarantee your safely while you are on the premises' _the voice assured him. Remy straightened from the leaning position he had been in and looked around. He was confused before, but now he could place the voice. It belonged to the bald man in the wheelchair, their Professor . . . Charles Xavier. For a split second Remy contemplated running out of Rogue's room and not stopping until he was on the other side of the fence and never look back again. However, he discarded that idea before it was completely formed. He was always the curious type . . . and he had been drawn to the place for a reason.

So, Remy opened Rogue's door and glanced back and forth down the long and narrow hallway. _'Take a right' _the Professor said. Remy quickly obliged and headed down the dimly light cold hallway. He kept his eyes and ears tuned into his surroundings and his movements completely silent. He knew the Professor was a man of his word, but that did not mean Remy was not going to take caution. The hallway finally opened up to a grand staircase and down to the lower floor. Remy could just barely see the foyer of the Institute over the railings. Everything about the place was grand from the marble floor to the pristine white hand carved staircase railings. _'Take the stairs down and then a left' _the Professor instructed. With a quick surveillance glance, Remy descended the stairs down and veered left as he was instructed. Directly left of the stairs was another small hallway, which was short and divided into two opposite directions. _'Take another left. My door is at the end of the hall'_ Charles explained. Remy compiled and within seconds stood in front of a massive solid oak door. For the first time he felt a twinge of . . . doubt.

"Please come in," the voice said. Only this time it was not in his head, but from the other side of the door. Pushing aside any remnants of any reservations, Remy grasped the door knob firmly in his hand and pushed the it open.

The Professor's office was a large spacious room and could probably fit a dozen people comfortably. There was a huge massive mahogany desk in the center. Directly in front of Remy and before the desk were two Victorian style blue chairs. To the right there was a roaring fire with a marble fireplace. Behind the desk, the walls were lined with floor to ceiling bookshelves that were crammed with old leather bound books. On the right were a few file cabinets and a beautiful stained-glass window depicting a rose bush surrounded by butter-cream colored glass. The Professor sat behind his desk looking quite similar to a principle, Remy thought.

"Good morning, Mr. LeBeau. I'm happy you were able to join me. Please have a seat . . . we have much to discuss." Charles explained and gestured to the chairs in front of him. Remy sat down in one and waited not quite sure what to expect or how much this mutant knew about him. "Okay, well I suppose we should just jump right in shall we? I know you have snuck onto the Institute grounds several times. The first time I was quite curious what you were doing . . . I had my suspicions of course, but those are not always accurate. When you came tonight, I was certain that you were here for Rogue. Thus far you have made no move to let yourself be known to her, and I believe you mean her no harm. However, Rogue is . . . a delicate girl despite the façade she puts on for the world. She has been hurt deeply in the past, and I feel that she is finally moving forward in the right direction. I would hate for anything to derail this progress she has made." The Professor said while his gaze pierced into Remy's. His total calm was almost unnerving.

"Remy would never harm . . . Rogue," he explained. He had almost called her his chere, which was what he was accustomed to calling her. However, that seemed inappropriate in front of this man who was her caregiver. The Professor merely nodded to his statement.

"Now, I would like to move on to the second topic I would like to discuss with you. I gather you have left Magneto?" the Professor asked. Remy answered with a quick bob of the head in confirmation. "Then I would like to extend an offer to stay here." Remy stared at this man knowing _exactly_ what that offer entailed. It meant giving up crime, becoming an X-man, fighting for justice and all that. None of those things particularly interested him. However, there was one thing about the offer that made it difficult to refuse . . . his chere.

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Rogue slowly climbed out of the Institute's bus feeling more than exhausted. The trip had been a disaster. She was sort of mad Kitty and Kirk had skipped out in the field trip. She could have used the extra eyes for the younger kids. Since both Kitty and Kirk were in high school they still had the title of "student," but had escaped the trip since they both had final senior year English papers due. Each of the adults had divided up the kids. Wolverine took half the juniors; Storm was in charge of the other half, which left the smallest group of freshmen and sophomores to Rogue. They were supposed to be the easy ones, Rogue reflect ruefully while she turned back to glare at her group. These were her students, and she was meant to keep them under control. How was she going to teach if she could not handle five kids? They at least knew enough to look sorry as they got out of the car and stood in front of her obviously unsure of what to do.

The closest two kids were the twins: Cassie Sutton and Alec Sutton. For the most part they were similar as far as looks were concerned. They were both faire skin kids with chocolate colored hair. The eye color was different though. Alec had blue eyes and his sister's were a murky white as if she were blind, which she was not. In fact, she had the sight and always had visions of horrible and dark future events. Cassie was the quieter of the two and rarely talked to anyone aside from Rogue and her brother. Alec was the class clown. He was an empath with the ability to feel other's emotions as well as influence them. Just behind Alec, Kimberly James stared at Rogue as if she were waiting for punishment. She was the only other freshmen in the group other than the twins and was close to Alec for reasons beyond friendship. Her power was astral-projection, and she was quite skilled at it too. Kim, as she was called, looked almost Native American with some Caucasian characteristics sprinkled in. She had lightly tanned skin and long dark brown hair. Her eyes were warm brownish amber color. Finally, there were the two sophomores: Lorallie Draden and Carter Blake. Lorallie looked like an ordinary blond girl, but Rogue knew what lied underneath the hologram. Normally, she was a silvery green haired girl who looked more like a fairy than a teenage girl. She was incredibly thin, but that was no surprise since she did not eat any food. Her skin was slightly iridescent and reflected all the colors of the rainbow when in the light. Her eyes were a pretty shade of aqua green. She had powers with plants and was able to take on some of their properties. She lived off of sunlight and water. Carter was a medium meaning he could both see and communicate with the dead. He also had the ability to bring formerly living things back to life for a short period of time. Carter was the tallest of the bunch and had grey eyes and jet black hair. He was quite the show off . . . at least for Lorallie he was. The desire to impress her was what had caused so much trouble. When a pair of boys were bothering Lorallie, Carter decided that the skeleton of the t-rex directly next to the boys had had enough rest time and had brought the thing back to life. Only Wolverine had been able to kill the creature . . . again. In the end they had to cut the trip short.

"I hope you had fun since you're probably grounded. The Professor wants ta see ya, Carter." Rogue told him. After a second of hesitation he lurched forward into a death march towards the Institute. "Well get ta movin'" Rogue said to the others. They all sprang into action at once afraid of her wraith. If Rogue was not so tired and cranky she probably would have found the scene comical. Instead she sighed, and listened to them leave while leaning against the van door. She closed her eyes and rubbed them gently with the back of her hand. What had she gotten herself into?

"Don't worry child, it gets better," a soft female voice comforted. Rogue's eyes opened slowly and she offered Storm a half smile.

"Yeah . . . I know. I think am goin' to go raid the refrigerator for some nice cool sweet tea," Rogue explained and launched herself away from the door towards the Institute. Storm headed towards home from a different direction knowing Rogue wanted some time alone.

Before heading to the kitchen, Rogue first stopped off at her room to change. It had taken her a while to find what she wanted to wear in the bottom of her dresser drawer. It was not often that she put on the long-sleeved Nirvana tee-shit that came just above her knees with the short shorts underneath. It was a comfort shirt and when she wore it was one of the few times she showed skin. Walking around with her legs and feet bare served as a silent message to anyone who came near her to leave her alone. It meant that company was not welcome, and for the most part everyone respected the shirt for what it represented. She passed no one both to her room and on her way to the kitchen.

Rogue went straight to the kitchen cabinets and fished out a glass cup. Then she yanked the refrigerator door open and half disappeared inside. Their refrigerator was massive; of course it had to be to hold enough food to feed all the people living in the institute. It seemed that no one ever left. Even Jean and Scott still lived in the mansion as full time X-men. Finding her pitcher of tea, Rogue pulled the whole thing out and gently closed the door. After pouring her drink she brought the glass to her lips and let the sugar melt away her frustration.

"Uh . . . Rogue . . . like sorry to bother you, but we need to talk," Kitty said to Rogue's right. Rogue brought the glass down, but still held it firmly in her hand. Kitty was one of the few people who did not respect the shirt.

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This is the second chapter. The first part is all Remy. what do you think he will do? The second part is my fav in this chapter. I know I introduce you to five new character, but I think you'll like them. If you would like a brief character sketch before the next chapter for them let me know. They will play a part in the story. What do you think Kitty is going to tell Rogue? Not a whole lot of diologue here since I'm still setting things up. This will be a long story and I plan to take my time and not rush it. I hope you enojyed this chapter. I edited the best I could, but let me know if there are any horrific mistakes. Please review!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own X-men

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Tante' Che'nelle : thanks jadeDino : thank you. I didn't let him look in the box becuase that would be too easy. He might find out later though. WolfFenrisulfr : thanks for the suggestion. I agree it came out a little chunky. And thanks for pointing out I worte Kurt's name wrong. Kirk is a character from a totally different story I'm working on. I can't believe I accidently wrote that name down. Thanks for pointing it out. I'll be careful not to do that again.

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Rogue watched in irritation as Kitty came and sat down at one of the chairs of the kitchen table. Apparently this was going to be a long talk . . . a talk Rogue had no desire to have no matter what the topic. Therefore, she shifted her weight and took a step towards the young brunette. Kitty stared right back not even slightly affected by Rouge's gaze, it was one of the down sides to being formerly roommates. Kitty was totally immune to Rogue's death glares that normal had people backpedaling.

After a heavy sigh, Rogue barked at the girl, "What do yah want?"

"Before I get to the news . . . I wanted to ask you how you feel about Gambit." The happy teen demanded with seriousness that Rogue did not know she was capable of expressing. In fact, Rogue noted a lack of "likes" in her question. Kitty was always the lighthearted bubbly girl who worried more about her hair than the woes of the world. Rogue was also shocked by her question. It seemed out of the blue and she tried desperately to connect dots, but it seemed impossible.

"Hell, that was random. What ya doin' bringin' him up for?" she asked avoiding answering the question. Her throat felt suddenly tight, so Rogue decided to take a sip of her tea.

"What would you do if say . . . you saw him again?" Kitty pressed.

"Ah ain't havin' this conversation cus its pointless. Gambit is God knows where doin' God knows what. Neither one of us is gonna see him any time soon." She said in a low voice to make certain that it was "case closed" in Kitty's head.

"Well maybe you _should_ think about it because Gambit is here in the mansion. He arrived this morning," Kitty said as she leaned back against her chair with a smug grin across her face trying to read any reactions in Rogue's face. She merely blinked at Kitty a few times dumbfounded.

"Funny, Kitty. You and you're weird sense of hum---" Rogue began to say, but stopped dead in her tracks as an arm snaked around her middle and she was pulled back into a strong male chest. She felt warm breath on her neck and she recognized the black trench coat attached to the arm.

"You miss me chere?" Gambit said into her neck. The next sound to be heard was shattering glass and Rogue found herself no longer standing but in Gambit's strong arms bridal style. After a foggy moment, Rogue's mind came back and she blushed from head to toe. He was exactly how she remembered . . . handsome with those captivating black and red eyes. He was better than any of her erotic dreams and her blood was already pounding in her veins.

"Put me down swamp rat!" she hissed trying to cover up her fear and nerves with anger. Remy only smiled at her and gave a glance at the ground where Rogue could see her tea and the shards of glass from her former cup.

"Sorry, Remy not mean to startle his chere," he said with that dark and husky voice that made Rogue want to melt. However, instead of thanking him for saving her feet from utter doom she glared at him as if he were the most horrible thing she ever laid eyes on. She always turned to anger in situations that frightened her and being in his arms made her terrified.

"Well put me down somewhere else," she muttered under her breath tensely. Remy did not seem the least bit affected by her tone or stare.

"Remy sort of likes where you are now," he complained before turning to Kitty. She looked like a fish with her mouth opening and closing. Internally, Rogue groaned knowing that she would never hear the end of this and soon the whole mansion would know. "Petite . . . could you get sometin t'clean dis up?" he asked her. Kitty nodded and sprang towards the closet. Remy then returned his gaze back to Rogue and it seemed like a dozen butterflies had been set loose in the pit of her stomach.

"Swamp rat!" Rogue growled giving him one last warning before things got bloody. Remy gave a short chuckled before plopping her down on the kitchen counter. However, he did not go far and instead Remy pushed his body against the counter and in between her legs. His gaze held hers and Rogue could not move or complain about his closeness. The thought of touching him and knocking him out flickered across her mind . . . but he would then either hit his head on the table, impale himself on the broken glass, or both. To get some distance, Rogue pushed her head against the wood of the top cabinet wishing for Kitty's power at the moment.

"I asked you a question, chere? Did you miss dis Cajun?" he asked again and slowly rose his hands to rest on either side of her head. Rogue blinked and tried to will away the scene before her and wake up in her bed. However, she was keenly aware of his hips pressing against her thighs and the heat radiating off his body. It was all too real to be any dream.

"Miss you?" she said with a nasty tone . . . even for her. "Why would ah?" she demanded. Remy leaned in even closer and his breath tickled her face in a gentle caress.

"I t'ink you did chere," he said. Rogue rolled her eyes.

"Chere is _not_ mah name!" she shot back.

"Neither is Rogue." Remy pointed out. His left hand moved and brushed her cheek softly and leaned his face in close. If she moved in the slightest bit they would have their second kiss. Rogue stiffened from the contact on his fingers of her face, but before she could do anything else Remy was nowhere near her. Logan had come into the kitchen and practically pounced on the Cajun. He looked absolutely furious with his claws fully extended. They seemed menacing and out for blood. Remy slowly picked himself up off the floor not making any sudden movements and his eyes locked on the blades angled towards his guts.

"Just because Chuck thinks you have good intentions doesn't mean the rest of us believe in your newly turned leaf. You pull a stunt like the one I just walked in on I'll take care of you permanently." Logan growled.

"Wait, Logan! You don't understand. Remy was helping me. I dropped a glass and ah am barefoot. Ah would be in the medic wing getting stitches if he hadn't picked me up off the ground so fast." She explained quickly to his defense. Logan's gaze locked onto her and he slowly took her in trying to sense any lie in her words. Logan was always overly protective of her . . . more a father-like figure at times than a teacher. He saw that she was indeed barefoot and that there was broken glass on the ground. A second later his claws retracted.

"You okay stripes?" he asked even though he knew the answer. Rogue merely nodded in response and shifted on the counter feeling slightly awkward. After a drawn out sigh, Logan turned to Remy and grunted a soft apology before leaving the kitchen.

"Remy t'ink da wolf man not like him," he said breaking the silence. Rogue merely narrowed her eyes in on him.

"What do you think you were doin'?" she asked angry again now that he was out of imminent danger. Of course that was the moment Kitty decided to return with a broom and dust pan. She stopped in her tracks as the mood of the room hit her.

"Did I like miss something?" she asked looking back and forth between Rogue and Remy.

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So this is the third chapter. Rogue and remy finally meet again. Quite the interesting reunion. So what did you think? what is going to happen next? How will Rogue deal with the object of her desires living in the same house as her? Will Remy win her heart of get kicked to the curb? How will all the other x-men deal withthe new addition? And what darkness is on the horizon? So, please review and tell me what you think.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own the X-men

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Kai3anime : thanks and yeah, you're right. Some one else pointed it out too. It was a mix up in my brain with a completely different story and character. But thank you for pointing it out.

tfobmv18 : thank you

SleepyHeather : thanks

Tante' Che'nelle : yeah. Rogue can't make up her mind if she wants to save him or kill him herself.

ChamberlinofMusic : thanks. I'm happy there was plenty of steamy tension.

Tempting Sweet Poison : thanks

Shanynde : thanks. I personally see Logan as her father figure. He seemes to have a closeness to Rogue that is not present between him and any of the other x-men. And of course no father is going apporove of the wild Cajun we know and love, Remy.

jadeDino : yep. Time will tell, but I can promise you trouble. Every story needs a little rough seas.

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The mansion was practically humming with gossip. Rogue could feel it sitting on her bed locked up in her room. She knew that it was not only about Remy suddenly showing up and joining the x-men. No, unfortunately some of the gossip was about her . . . and the fact that she had very publically screamed at the Cajun before locking herself in her room. In hindsight, it probably was not the smartest move on her part if she intended to not create any buzz about her and him, but she had been furious with him. What right did he have to almost . . . what was he thinking?

Rogue groaned audibly and stared up at the white ceiling. Hiding was also stupid . . . and it was nearing dinner time. Most of the other's were probably making their way to the dining room. Her absence would cause a whole new furry of whispers, but the thought of seeing him made Rogue blush. In a quick childish moment Rogue kicked her bed wildly. Only the sound of a gentle and hesitant knocking stopped her.

"Rogue?" he brother asked questioningly on the other side.

"Come in Kurt," she told the door. A second later she heard a loud poof followed by the faint smell of rotten eggs. Rogue was instantly gagging on the stench that proceeded her brother transporting to somewhere.

"Sorry meine Schwester," Kurt said suddenly standing in front of Rogue's bed. She found his presence instantly comforting. Even if the rest of the Institute gained up against her for their amusement, he would remain on her side. They were family above everything else. Over the years Rogue had grown very close to her little brother and vice versa. "I vanted to see if you vere okay," stated the blue and fuzzy mutant. His amber eyes studied Rogue intensely and she knew he could read her like a book. Sighing heavily, Rogue gazed right back.

"Ah fine really," she assured him. Just because he knew she was full of it did not mean Rogue had any intention of giving in that easily.

Kurt ignored the obvious lie and continued saying, "You must be hungry. Why don't we go down and eat supper and your bruder will protect you from everyone." Rogue considered his offer for a moment. It was probably best if she went. It would certainly help die down some of the gossip. Rogue nodded solemnly not liking the idea one bit, but she was happy to have Kurt for backup.

"Ah need ta change. Ah will be right out," she told him. With a poof her brother was gone, which left Rogue alone to her minor panic attack. Pushing down the bulk of her emotions, Rogue rose from her bed and searched for some clothes to wear. She opted for comfort knowing that if she dressed nice the others could interpret that into meaning she was dressing up for someone. So, Rogue pulled her door open wearing a pair of plain black sweatpants and an old and worn long-sleeved grey and maroon Mississippi State University football shirt. Her hair she pulled up into a pony-tail. Kurt was there waiting just like he said he would.

They talked idly about how much trouble Carter had gotten into on the way to the dining room. Apparently the Professor had assigned him extra weekend danger-room sessions with Wolverine for a month for his little stunt. They also talked about other trivial matters like Bobby's new non-mutant girlfriend. They talked about everything except the new mutant in the house, who was on everyone else's lips. Rogue was not even surprised when the dining room got really quiet when she and Kurt walked in. She also noticed that there were only two seats available and neither were together or preferable. One empty seat was between to Kitty and Jean the other was on the end of the table next to Remy. Rogue had to make a quick decision . . . and both sounded horrible. She loved Kitty like a dear friend, but the brunette would interrogate her brutally if given the chance. The seating arrangement was clearly a set up . . . the questions was who was in on the plot.

"Chere, there is a seat available next to moi," Remy said loudly with amusement sparkling in his eyes. Now she had no choice. Kurt gave her a quick apologetic look before taking the seat next to Kitty. Rogue was about to resign to her fait when Logan came into the room with a chair above his head and a plate and silverware in his hand. He squeezed it next to the other chair on the end and sat down in the chair next to Remy.

"Sit down Stripes," Logan said gesturing to the chair next to him. Rogue quickly complied and sang his praises in her mind. "We needed another chair with the new addition." Logan muttered ignoring Remy even though he was talking about him. Rogue could tell he was not overly found of the Cajun.

"Yeah, thanks for the seat Logan," Rogue said sincerely. He gave her a quick knowing look before grabbing the bowl of mash potatoes in front of him.

"You're helping me with the training sessions tomorrow right kid?" Logan asked after dumping a small hill of potatoes on his plate. Of course Rogue should have known his rescue came with a price. However, she welcomed the distraction that came with danger-room sessions. It was fun watching the new kids struggle like she had years ago.

"Sure," she said with a shrug and accepted the bowl passed her way. Rogue only put a small spoonful on her plate before passing it to a silent Cassie. The frail blond looked sad and refused to look Rogue in the eyes as she accepted the bowl and passed it to her brother Alec without taking any mashed potatoes. Rogue reach over and placed her gloved hand gently on the young girl's. Those murky white eyes instantly shot upwards to gaze back into Rogue's.

"You okay, sugah?" she asked concerned.

"Don't go after him alone. I know you will want to but don't," she whispered before bolting out of the chair and out of the room before Rogue could even process her words.

"What's that about Alec?" Rogue asked the girl's brother. He shook his head before muttering an apology and running after his sister. Rogue rose to follow, but an arm held her back. Rogue turned back and gave Logan a questioning look.

"Leave them Rogue. Alec can take care of her." He mumbled. Rogue sighed and sat back down in her chair.

"So you're from New Orleans?" Tabitha asked the Cajun gaining Rogue's attention.

"Oui, petite Remy be from der," he said with his charming voice. Rogue caught the flicker of his eyes on her before he turned fully to the short haired girl. Rogue rolled her eyes before glancing around the table looking for the food. It seemed that most of the mansion was still and unmoving watching her end of the table intently.

"Wow . . . that's cool. You speak French don't you?" Tabitha asked out loud.

"Tabitha there's a bowl of carrots and a plate of chicken ya aint passin' so could ya please pass them down?" Rogue demanded of the short haired blonde. Tabitha glared at Rogue before turning to get both plates and handed them to Remy who only took a piece of fried chicken before giving it off to Logan. The Canadian man looked at the meat questioningly before plopping a wing and thigh on his plate. Rogue could feel the Cajun's eyes transfixed on her while she used her fork to retrieve a drumstick from the pile of fried chicken.

Rogue was surprised to even see friend chicken. It was not something normally made at the mansion. It was even rarer to see that it was southern chicken. It was the spicy kind that cleared the sinuses . . . in other words it was the kind Rogue loved. She had an inkling where the chicken came from, but did not care as she bit down on the still hot meat. Flavor exploded in her mouth erasing any possibility that this delicacy was anything other than homemade.

"Yah chicken is good Remy," she said to her plate before taking another eager bit. Rogue never glanced his way even when he burst into laughter. If having the Cajun at the Institute meant she was going to get some good southern cooking out of it Rogue thought that she could tolerate his presence . . . if just barely.

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Sorry there's not a whole lot of interaction between Rogue and Remy in this chapter, but there is always the next one. All the x-men are talking about our two southernerns, but what are they saying? Does Tabitha have a thing for Remy? And what about our Cajun? Who is he trying to fool? Does Logan have something up his slieve? And what about Cassie our little seer? What did she see, and does it lead to disaster for Rogue? If you want answers keep reading my updates. And please people review! Oh an if you see any horrible errors in any non-english language or written dialect then please feel free to point it out. Writting in a southern, Cajun, and German accents is hard.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclosure: I do not own the X-men (oh and I don't own Monty Python).

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Shadow Hand Zealot : thank you. I hate rushed pieces, so I'm happy that it does not feel that way.

Valnar : thanks

sleepy26 : thank you

ChamberlinofMusic : thanks. goota love Logan, well at least I do

Acedia RG : thanks. I'll try and work on that. Let me know if you see any repeaters.

jadeDino : yes it cannot be good since all Cassie sees in disasters. I do have a few villians in mind plus some personally created ones.

tfobmv18 : thanks

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Rogue looked around the dimly light and alien room calmly. Although she had no idea where she was she felt instinctively safe. Moonlight from the arched balcony illuminated the simple pure white room encased with white drapes all around. In the center of the room on a platform a plush inviting large bed waited with crisp fresh snow white sheets and plump pillows. Rogue looked down and was slightly shocked to find herself completely naked, but at the same time she did not feel self conscious. She felt free and the smile on her seemed to belonged there.

"_Chere, you are de most belle femme I know," a husky masculine voice said from the direction of the balcony. _

"_Ah bet ya would know wouldn't ya swamp rat since you are familiar with a lot of women." Rogue said with broad grin despite her harsh words. She slowly turned to him and the smile never left her face. Remy was leaning against the wall. His chest was bare and nothing could distract Rogue from his statuesque chest. His shoulders were broad and his arms powerfully muscled. The black jeans were tight and framed his marvelous form perfectly. His shoes were oddly off and his bare feet rested on the cool wood floor. Rogue looked into his demonic eyes. The red gave off a slight light like the embers of a cigarette. She could clearly see his love for her in their depths._

"_Chere, Remy gives you a compliment and all you can do is be sharp. Remy does love dat wicked tongue of yours though." He said thoughtfully with a hint of amusement in his voice before launching himself off the wall. Rogue inhaled deeply in anticipation. He did not waste any time in coming to her. Remy instantly went in for a kiss and his glove-less fingers buried themselves in her hair. Fireworks exploded in Rogue's mind and her legs quivered. Remy caught her before she could hit the floor and swept her into his eager arms. He chuckled down at her noticing her pink flushed cheeks. _

"_Gawd Remy . . ." Rogue mumbled. She felt so comfortable in his arms. His flesh against her flesh. It was what she had yearned for . . . what they had yearned for. Remy gently placed her down on the bed and laid down beside her and resumed his kisses only this time on her neck. Rogue could not help but moan softly. _

Rogue gasped for air and work up in her bed alone in the mansion. Her heart was pounding, and for a confused moment her eyes scanned the dark for the Cajun that was not there. Realization slowly hit her and made Rogue blush. She hated that dream with a passion. Why was she having vivid dreams about the kleptomaniac? He was the last person she wanted to have dreams like that about. Remy LeBeau was a player, and if she was not careful he would steal her heart and throw it away. Turing in bed to the direction of the clock, Rogue groaned when she saw that it was only five in the morning. Why could she not sleep in like normal people on the weekend? Knowing that more sleep was out of the question she sat up in her bed.

After getting out of bed the cold slowly sucked away the warmth from her body making Rogue shiver. She quickly decided to stay in the clothes she had slept in, which consisted of long-sleeved black tee-shirt that had in big bold white lettering 'Don't take it personally. I'm always like this' and her purple and pink flannel pajama pants. The shirt had been a Christmas present from Kitty a few years back and was the perfect loose comfy sleep wear. After putting on her killer bunny slippers, Rogue quietly exited her room. From there she headed towards the recreation room. She was not hungry and watching meaningless tv seemed perfect. Anything that would clear her mind of that dream would be welcomed. However, as she approached the closed double doors to the rec-room Rogue paused upon seeing amber light pooling out from the bottom of the door.

Rogue instantly knew she was not alone in her early morning insomnia. She had a few options . . . the first was backpedal and go back to her room. Scrunching up her nose in distaste, she instantly rejected that idea. Rogue could go to another location in the mansion, but she was always the curious type. It was a good thing she was not a cat. Therefore Rogue yanked open one of the doors and stepped inside the room. Her sight was blinded momentarily by the bright light, but soon they adjusted. Rogue could have kicked herself and her curiosity. The one person she wanted to avoid above all was sitting at the large comfy couch in front of the large screen tv.

He did not seem as surprised to see her as she was to see him. Remy was sitting in a relaxed position regarding her with that eternal mocking smirk. He was wearing his typical uniformed attire already, which made Rogue instantly aware of her slightly embarrassing clothes. Glancing at the television Rogue saw that he was watching the nature channel. The lioness was stalking the poor unsuspecting gazelle.

"Mornin' chere," he said pleasantly from the couch and patted the cushion. "Come join Remy." Rogue hesitated a moment. She really did not want to be near him with the images of her dream still fresh in her mind. His smirk only grew at her hesitation. "Don' be afraid o' dis homme. Remy won' bite . . . unless you ask," he said with a suggestive wink. At his comment Rogue growled softly before confidently marching over to the couch and sitting close of the cocky Cajun.

"Meh afraid of you? You have got to be kidding meh," she shot back.

"Remy was beginning to wonder if you was not going to join him," he stated turning his gaze back to the tv in time to see a leg being torn off the gazelle carcass. With the click of the remote the screen changed to a poker tournament.

"What do yah mean? Yah knew it was meh?" Rogue demanded turning her head towards the slightly older man. She wished she had not though. He was stunningly handsome . . . all wolves were after all. He smelled good to . . . like spices and pure sex appeal. They were sitting dangerously close, and Rogue could even feel the body heat coming off him like a warm caress.

"Oui, Remy is a thief after all. Good senses . . . you chere are unmistakable." He explained. Rouge snorted in response.

"Mah name ain't chere so quit calling meh by it." She said choosing to ignore his comment for the most part. Silence followed for a few moments before Remy changed the channel yet again to the news. There had been a shooting twenty minutes outside of Bayville at a nursing home. Rogue could not imagine why there would be a shooting at a location like that unless the residents had been refused bingo.

"Remy wouldn' have pegged you for de bunny slipper type," Remy said out of the blue. Rogue blushed, but chose to defend her slippers.

"Well swamp rat, they are _killer_ bunny slippers, you know from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Second, ya don't know meh." Rogue pointed out. From the corner of her eye she could see that Remy had turned his head towards her. She could feel his eyes scanning her from head to toe, and it made her feel self-conscious. No one else had ever cause her to feel flustered like the crazy Cajun did.

"De are cute . . . can't say Remy has ever heard of dis Monty thing." He said still looking at her. When his statement hit Rogue she turned and glared at him in disbelief.

"You serious? That's down right unnatural. You have to watch it." She said sternly and turned away before his stunning eyes could hypnotize her. A second later a finger brushed slowly up and down her arm. Rogue froze instantly and was unable to move.

"Remy will do anything wit you chere," he said his voice suddenly taking on a seductive quality. Then Rogue was moving. She shrugged off his fingers and her arm swung to smack him across his face. Her swing never made contact and instead Remy threw himself on top of her and pinned her hands above her head. He was smiling down at her with his black and red eyes glowing. Rogue instantly shrieked, but the sound had barely escaped her lips when his gloved hand covered her mouth.

"Rogue calm down. Remy will let you go if you promised not to fight moi," he whispered to her. Rogue glared at him and let her years of training kick in. She began yanking her arms while she brought her legs up and hocked them in front of Remy's torso. The next second the New Orleans man was on his back with an angry southern belle straddling his thighs. Rogue hovered her ungloved hand just above his face.

"Listen swamp rat, you do something like that again you will wake up in the medic room. Understand?" she growled. She was surprised when the man below her did not cower at her anger or threat. Most would be pleading by now, but his cocky smile only grew.

"Um . . . Remy didn' know you liked it rough, but he likes his femmes feisty." He said practically laughing. Rogue groaned in disgust and climbed off him.

"Pervert," she spat as she headed towards the door.

"Chere don' go . . . it was just getting interesting." He shouted just as she slammed the door shut. Rogue knew one thing as she stormed towards the door, she liked the crazy Cajun. Had anyone else done what he had there would not have been a threat and only the intense headache as they woke up the next day with Beast hovering over them in the medic room. She also knew that liking him promised disaster and heart ache. She was going to keep that from happening even if she had to pretend to hate him.

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Okay so here is chapter five. Not much action, but the next chapter will have more action and more x-men in it. I promise there is a plot and it will start to develop in the next few chapters. So what do you think of the Rogue and Remy goddness? That was pretty bold of Remy right? So, let me know what you think. Please review!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own X-men

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Wanda W (5) : again, thank you for all the reviews. Yes Cassie's vision is forboding. You will have to wait and see what it means. Hum . . . I meant to explain Remy's insomnia . . . but forgot. See, his roommate is Bobby and he snores. Nothing too dramatic there. I guess I'll leave it out now . . . oh well.

kataragirl11 : thanks. Yeah Rogue is stuggling. I think she is the type to over think things. She is a worrier.

Wanda W : (4) yeah. I don't think anyone but Tabitha fell for that, but we'll have to see won't we?

Wanda W : (3) thanks I'm happy its not coming of cliche.

Wanda W : (2) again thank you for the conpliment. Yes Remy is fully aware of his decision, and that is important

Wanda W : (1) thanks. First for taking the time to review each chapter. I really appreciate it.

ChamberlinofMusic : yeah he doesn't strike me as the monty type. Rogue will have to fix that

WolfFenrisulfr : thank you

tfobmv18 : thanks and yes, that is easier said than done, and that would make things too easy for our Cajun

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Sunday mornings were ritualistic at the Institute. The x-men of a religious nature would get up early and head off for service before the all the training and danger-room sessions commenced. Rogue was a southern Baptist, but had not been to a church service in years. She did not really have a big overly dramatic falling out with the big guy she just chose to spend her Sunday morning doing other things. Usually, she would catch up on her pleasure reading then and in the past any high school work. Now, she would quietly work on her online courses. At ten, she and the other adult x-men would commence their danger-room practice and anything else Scott Summers felt he needed to torture them with. That would be followed by lunch and then training and danger-room sessions for the students.

Rogue always wondered how Scott had landed the gig of leader of the adult x-men. She knew he was being groomed for the position for years, but she was still surprised he had become the leader so quickly. He had only graduated two years ago. Logan was perfect for the job and so much Scott's senior, however Wolverine took orders from Scott like everyone else. Logan was the leader of all the students and nothing Cyclops could say or do would override that. Maybe that was why he did not hold the position . . . too busy with the kids. Not that Rogue personally minded Scott being the leader . . . even though he could be trying at times and an overachiever.

At the moment she was tuning him out. Scott had decided that they needed to be briefed about how to deal with violence coming from humans. Rogue had heard it all before . . . don't use your powers . . . blah blah blah . . . try talking things out . . . yadda yadda. Instead of listening her mind wandered as well as her eyes. The adult x-men were a small group consisting of Logan, Ororo, Scott, Jean, Hank, herself, and now Remy. Rogue's gaze turned to the man from New Orleans. They were in one of the classroom style rooms of the lower levels of the mansion. The large horseshoe table made it possible to seeing everyone including Scott standing at a podium in the front of the room. Remy was seated one down from Rogue with Logan in between even though his typical seat was next to Storm. Jean sat next to the Cajun in order to have a center seat directly in front of her boyfriend. Ororo, who was next to Jean, looked just as bored as she felt. Hank sat on the end and actually seemed like he was paying attention to Scott, but Rogue doubted it very much. Mr. McCoy was just extremely good at faking it.

Movement from Remy caused Rogue's eyes to involuntarily flicker over to him. He was the picture of easy leaning back into his chair with his arms folded behind his head. Rogue could not help but admire his form in this position. It was downright sinful how good he looked. After a moment he caught her looking, and a smile slowly spread across his face as he winked at her. Rogue purposely rolled her eyes and turned back to Scott. However, some sort of curiosity made her look back in his direction. She was a moth mesmerized by the flame. Remy was fully turned to her and staring right at her. Rogue blushed and closed her eyes. When she reopened her eyes it was Jean she saw. The telepath was also staring at her, only the redhead's expression was different from the Cajun's. Jean was glaring at her with disapproval. Rogue knew she must have read her mind at some point, which made Rogue narrow her eyes in anger at the telepath. She then made a mental picture of her dying the redhead's hair hot pink . . . a silent warning about roaming around in her mind. Horror and outrage was apparent on Jean's face before she turned back to Scott now ignoring her. Rogue smiled pleased with herself and her work. _That_ would certainly keep Miss Priss out of her head for a while.

Again, movement from Remy caught Rogue's attention. He was now talking off his coat to drape it across the back of his chair, which revealed more of his body. The skin tight uniform perfectly showed off his chiseled chest and abs, and Rogue was positively drooling in her mind. She was so involved in staring at him that it took a moment for her mind to register the cocky grin broadening on his face. Her eyes shot up to his demonic orbs only to find that he was watching her intently. Amusement and mirth reigned supreme in his crimson eyes that danced with life. Rogue felt the blood pool in her cheeks as she blushed yet again. From Remy a soft chuckle could be heard by all. Rouge again used Scott as an excuse to avert her gaze from the Cajun; however their leader was not talking. In fact, he looked angry with his jaw set firmly in a frown.

"I am explaining important things," Scott said slowly and softly. "I know you are new at this _Gambit_, but you need to pay attention and stop flirting with Rogue!" The last phrase ended with a shout. Rogue was instantly blushing harder than she ever thought humanly possible. Logan snorted softly beside her either in humor or disapproval Rogue could not tell which it was. Then she looked back at her fellow southerner. He seemed unfazed . . . on the contrary he was amused by Cyclops' anger. Trust the Cajun to not know when he was in grave danger. Scott loved using his power and dolling out punishments was one of his favorite past times.

"Sorry homme, but can you blame Remy?" asked the New Orleans man with a slight shrug. This seemed to only anger Scott more and soon his whole face became red. A minute passed while everyone in the room watched the red slowly dissipate from Cyclops' face as he returned to normal.

"Well since you and Rogue are so _close_ you won't mind doing extra danger- room sessions after dinner together right?" Scott asked tersely.

"What?" Rogue demanded almost rising from her seat. "What did ah do?"

Scott turned to glare at her . . . or at least that was what Rogue imagined he was doing under his eyewear. "You were completely ignoring my lecture to flirt with him too. I think you both need extra danger-room time to make up for what you lost today."

"I was _not_ flirting!" she screamed. Rogue knew she should discuss this with Scott calmly like the adult that she was, but Rogue was still who she was . . . and she was particularly touchy when it came to the Cajun. She did not want anyone especially him to even think she was flirting with him. Relief flooded Scott's face momentarily before he returned to his stoic blank leader expression.

"Okay fine, I retract that statement. However, you still were not paying any attention the whole time. So, at seven we are having an additional danger-room session for the both of you. I will gladly supervise. Now, since we have gotten so off track why don't we end this lecture and go run some simulations." Scott declared. His words were followed by the screech of metal chairs against a metal floor and the rustle of movement. Rogue remained seated briefly still in disbelief that she was going to not only do one danger-room session but three. She still had to fulfill her promise to Logan and help with the younger students after lunch. She rose from her chair and looked around for the Cajun. She found him leaning against the door frame waiting for her. He was going to pay for letting her get dragged into his punishment. A part of Rogue knew it was also partly her fault, but Scott would never have called her on her lack of attention if the swamp rat had not done what he did. So, as she approached him it was not entirely surprising to Rogue when she subconsciously and swiftly kicked him with all her strength in the shin.

"Merde!" Remy yelled and instantly grabbed his throbbing shin while hissing in pain through his teeth. "What did you do dat for?" he asked slightly angry. Okay . . . perhaps it was not entirely subconscious. If asked, Rogue had every intention of blaming it on the personalities in her head. Yep, the voices made her do it.

"This is all your fault yah stupid swamp rat. Watch yourself in the danger-room . . . ah have some anger to work out," Rogue snapped and sprinted towards the others.

Rogue entered the danger-room and felt Remy close on her heels. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she could feel his eyes bearing down on her. At least she had finally broken his unwavering calm, and Rogue smiled smugly at the thought. Cyclops was explaining that they were dividing up into groups with one team trying to beat the other. Rogue raised her gloved hand and ran her fingers quickly through her streaked hair.

"Okay . . . Storm, Rogue, Jean and I will form the first team. Wolverine you are leader of your team. We are going to work on infiltration and defense skills. Which one do you want Wolverine?" Scott asked. Rogue looked to her father figure. She knew what his answer would be before the words ever left his lips.

"Defense," the older Canadian man replied. Logan loved being on the attack, but everyone knew him best as a defense expert. He was excellent in protecting a systems or finding securities weakness. Her team was at a great disadvantage going against him in this area. Good thing over the years Logan had taught them practically everything he knew. They split up in the room both teams heading towards their designated starting positions. Using the remote Scott turned on the simulation and they were no longer in the pure white room. Now they were outside a warehouse on a dark cold night. Rogue never fully understood how the room worked. A hologram was not supposed to be a sold object. However, she knew for certain that if she touched the wall of the warehouse it would be firm to the touch. The Professor had tried to explain it once, but all that did was give Rogue a headache.

"Now we should devise a plan . . . three of us need to take one person out while the forth tries to capture the vase they are protecting. Jean, I think you should retrieve the item," Scott suggested. Rogue rolled her eyes. The man was firm with the rest of them but every order out of his mouth to his girlfriend always sounded like a question.

"That's fine Scott," Jean said with a slight nod.

"Storm, I want you to handle Wolverine," Scott said. Rogue suppressed the laugh at the difference in the statement. With Jean it was "I think" and with Storm "I want".

"Rogue, can you take out Gambit while I take on Beast?" Scott asked questioning her ability to fight the Cajun.

"That'll be _no_ problem," Rogue said in an overly sweet voice. Scott's face was instantly guarded. It was a natural male response when hearing that tone from a woman. Rogue was looking forward to starting this particular danger-room session. She was going to kill two birds with one stone . . . after all a girl has got to multi-task.

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Okay so we get some flirting from our favorite southern couple. and poor Remy getting kicked in the shin. He tries so hard. Next chapter is going to be full of action and Romyness of course. What does Rogue mean by killing two birds with one stone? Poor Scott. He needs to be careful where he treads. We finnaly see Remy break away from her perfectly calm demeanor. Nothing like a southern belle to make a man change his ways. If you are wondering where the plot is all I have to say is patience. I have a plot I promise, but wait. It will start to develop in the next few chapters. So, please review. I really appreciate it!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own x-men

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ChamberlinofMusic : thanks. And yes poor Remy.

Shaylrose : uh sorry for the confusion. That comment was directed to Remy not Scott. I should have been clearer.

The Duplicitous One : I agree Romy forever.

tfobmv18 : um . . . no real reason as to why. I just always thought that eventually Scott would get the job. He was after all leader of the younger team. Who knows what the Professor's intentions are.

jadeDino : (6) thank you

jadeDino : (5) thanks. I'm happy that I could make you laugh

Jigsaw 19 : um well you were polite in your opinion and I respect that. As to your complaint, everything has been done before. This story is not meant to be the most original in the world. All I am trying to do is have fun writting about this couple that I personally love and share it with others who feel the same. You do not have to read it if you do not like it, but I write how I write. But, thank you for expressing your feelings politly. that is rare and appreciate that.

Fostersb : I did not think of that, but I'm sure Remy would find that scene hillarious. Of course there is the making fun of the French accents. I wonder how he will take that.

AshmandaLC : thank you

Wanda W : thanks, and yeah just love to hate Jean. Logan was definitly laughing on the inside

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The problem with carefully laid down plans is that they never work they way you intend. Rogue was not even slightly surprised when Scott's plan fell apart the moment they entered the warehouse. Things happened quickly and forced the participants to make fast decisions. Wolverine went right for Scott, which was not a surprising outcome. The older Canadian had been dying to knock down Scott from his high horse for weeks. Scott was trying unsuccessfully to hit Wolverine with his beam only to have Logan dodge each one and slowly advance towards him. Jean and Storm were both fighting Hank. It seemed that Mr. McCoy was giving the experienced weather witch and the telepath a run for their money. He was working the angle of keeping then busy. That of course left Rogue to try and get the vase. She could see clearly it was not sitting upon the lighted pedestal, which meant only one thing. The klepto had swiped it.

Rogue ventured away from the fighting and into the offices inside the warehouse at a cautious crouch. It was nearly impossible to see in the dark. This put her at a disadvantage since Remy could see well at night with his eyes. She listened intently as she walked forward using her hand against the wall to direct her. Hearing was her only useful sense at the moment, but Rogue knew she would not have to wait long for him to attack. Rogue knew without any doubt Remy could not resist. She was a lost lamb from the herd . . . too tempting for a wolf like him. When he attacked she would be ready. Rogue had a few tricks up her sleeve, and she had no problem fighting dirty.

The soft rustle of fabric was the only warning Rogue received before Remy pushed her roughly against the wall. He pinned her hands above her head and forced himself between her legs to prevent her from kicking him where it would hurt. Rogue blinked and then struggled in his grip. She was not trying to escape . . . yet. For now she was using her body to feel for the vase. All she could see of the Cajun was his glowing red eyes and the shine off his teeth in the pale moonlight. His smell infiltrated her nose and made it hard to think clearly.

"Remy believe he caught somethin' in his web, non?" he asked. Rogue could feel his breath on her neck and suppressed the urge to shiver. She was satisfied that he had hidden the vase somewhere. It had to be nearby because it was not on him. With that knowledge, she relaxed in his grip. Remy seemed surprised by her action and almost let go of her arms.

"Ah guess you have. Now what are ya gonna do?" she asked mustering her sexiest voice.

"Merde . . . dis is a trick . . . oui?" Remy said his voice suddenly huskier than usual and pressed his body more against hers, but only where there would be no skin contact. Rogue's uniform was designed to protect others from her skin unless she decided otherwise. Remy knew he was falling into her trap, but did not seem to care. For a moment Rogue felt a twinge of guilt, but hey, all was fair in war and danger-room simulations right? Therefore, she moved towards his face with only centimeters in between their lips. Rogue was dimly aware of her pounding heart; however it was in the background of her mind something to reflect on later. She had a plan and a mission. Remy wanted to get close to her and now she was going to teach him why that was not a good idea. The next instant Rogue pressed her lips gently against his. She was caught completely off guard when Remy's lips pressed more firmly against hers before the pressure of his body melted away as he fell to the ground. His lips had been soft and warm, and Rogue unconsciously touched her gloved fingers to her lips as his memories flooded into her.

The first thought that entered her mind was his last conscious one. He had know she was tricking him and that kissing her back was stupid, but as he felt her soft lips the only thing Remy LeBeau thought was that it was worth it. Rogue blushed and glanced down at the now unconscious man. She could see clearly in the dark with his eyes. She also felt his more prominent ability tingling in her finger tips. Rogue sifted through the scattered and seemingly random memories for what she had hoped to gain.

Glancing around she found the bench Remy had hidden the vase underneath. Rogue got on her knees and reached in the darkness with confident fingers. Carefully she pulled out the ceramic vase with a wicked smile playing on her lips. Rogue then pushed the intercom button on her wrist watch transmitting her message to all the danger-room participants.

"Game over, Rogue got the vase," she said proudly. Wolverine growled loudly as the simulation disbursed and returned to the brilliant white of the danger-room. Rogue's eyes instantly adjusted, which was something she did not know the Cajun could do. So wearing the shades all the time was only to look good she mused while standing from her crouch. The other x-men were in various stages of dishevel as Rogue looked around. Logan had managed to tear his uniform. Storm looked positively exhausted and was leaning against Logan for support. Jean was crouched over a barely conscious Scott with an expression of pain evident on her face. Scott was sitting on the ground breathing heavily, which made Rogue smile. That would definitely put him in his place for a while . . . and the fact that _she_ had not only beaten Gambit, but had also secured the vase for their team was just perfect. Rogue turned to Beast who was smiling smugly.

"Rogue think Gambit a besoin de vous l'aide," she said to Beast. (he needs your help). The former chemistry teacher only stared at Rogue with that expression he got when he was regarding someone or something like an intriguing specimen. However, after that moment he went towards the still and unconscious Cajun.

"I did not know you knew French Rogue," Beast said after checking Remy for a pulse. That was when Rogue realized her mistake. That was the problem with her powers and prolonged contact. It meant that the person stuck with her more strongly and longer. She thought about lying, but that was stupid. Why should she care what they thought?

"Rouge absorbed Remy," she said with a small shrug. She heard Logan laugh, which instantly earned him a small jab in the ribs from Storm. Beast seemed as if he was going to comment further, but instead scooped Remy into his arms. That would humiliate the Cajun when he woke . . . having to be carried. Rogue then tried to reach into a pocket on a coat that did not exist for a deck of cards to shuffle. She hated feeling confused as to who she was after an absorption. She needed a cigarette . . . wait that was not right. Remy smoked?

Jean tried to help Scott up then, but he shooed her helping hands away before standing on his own. They guy did not take a bruised ego well. So Rogue did the only thing a girl in her position could do. She walked over to him with the intention of bruising him up some more. Scott seemed surprised by her approach. She placed the plain ceramic vase in his hand.

"Still want Rogue to do extra sessions?" she asked sweetly.

"Uh . . . um . . . no that's fine Rogue. You did great today . . . don't worry about it," Scott stammered. It did not take long though for him to regain his composure. "Good work everyone. That will be it for today. Beast could you take Gambit down to the medic wing?"

Beast nodded as everyone began to file out. Rogue was at the end of the procession her mind deep in thought. She was trying to sort through Remy's memories looking for any tidbit about her. She had gained a lot of memories . . . but nothing about her other than his thought on their kiss. She wondered if he had somehow been able to block some of his memories from her.

As she filled into the elevator with the others she caught Beast rubbing something off Remy's face . . . his lips to be precise. Rogue froze in horror just staring at the blue ape-like man. Mr. McCoy smile and winked at her before turning to say something to Scott. Rogue signed in relief. Why had she not though about her lipstick? Of course it would show up on the Cajun. She thanked God that it was Beast who found it and not someone else. Rogue turned slightly to find Logan giving her a calculating look.

"You okay kid?" he asked while slipping his arm around Storm's waist. He had probably smelled her sudden fear.

"Oui, Rogue is fine," she lied still using the Cajun's dialect. Wolverine looked from Remy back to her as if trying to draw to a conclusion. A low grunt came from his throat letting her know how much he bought her lie.

"Whatever you say stripes," Logan said. "You're still helping me with the munchkins right?"

"Oui," Rogue promised. She knew that Logan suspected something, but thankfully he never poked his nose somewhere unless he had absolute proof.

* * *

Okay this is my 7th chapter. So what do you think? Remy and Rogue have their technical second kiss, but the first in the story. Next chapter we will get some plot in this story. Something is coming and the x-men have no idea. How will they handle? How will Rogue? Well please review and let me know what you think.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own X-men

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ChamberlinofMusic : I'm sure he will be smug about it. He wouldn't be the cajun we know and love otherwise.

Shadow Hand Zealot : thank you. I'm happy to hear it

jadeDino : thank you

Shandy : thanks. Gotta love Beast. That would have been _bad_ had Logan found the lipstick. Thanks for the French lesson. I'm not too familar with it.

AshmandaLC : I love how remy acts around her too. And I have a basic plot outline planned with a few random scenes well developed in my head. But at the same time a lot of it is just i sit down and stuff comes out. so its a little of both.

tfobmv18 2: thank you

ShannaK : thanks. Don't expect them to keep coming in quickly. I know my teachers are just dying to overload me with homework at any minute. Yeah, word does make that chapters look longer. I try to keep the length consistent.

CloeyMarie : merci!

* * *

The kitchen at the institute was a nightmare around lunch time especially since it was every man for themselves mentality. It often turned ugly and food fights were the norm. Sunday lunches were particularly horrific since all the students were scrambling to scarf down some food before their training session with Logan. Rogue had barely walked in and instantly considered making and abrupt turnaround, but she was also doomed like the others to going to Logan's training session. She headed towards the refrigerator and looked inside at its contents. Not much of a selection she though ruefully.

"Schwester, look out!" Kurt yelled behind her. A second later some strange light yellow colored goo plastered itself against the back inside of the refrigerator. Rogue straightened, confused as to why the stuff was not smeared all over her back and hair. Turning to the left Rogue saw Kitty holding onto her arm. The room was dead quiet as if waiting in anticipation . . . waiting for her reaction.

"Thanks sugah," Rogue said in earnest to her best friend.

"Like, no problem, Rogue." Kitty said with a smile. Then Rogue turned around and narrowed her eyes on the culprits. Jamie and Alec both looked extremely afraid and guilty.

"Clean this up," was all Rogue said before gathering her desired items out of the refrigerator and dumping them onto the counter. The two younger boys scrambled to do as she said while Rogue set out at making herself some lunch. After a moment's thought she grabbed a second plate. Kitty and Kurt were at her side in a second.

"Zat vas a close call," Kurt said his voice full of disbelief. He was probably wondering why Rogue had not had a meltdown on the two kids.

"Yeah, ah am grateful ya phased that stuff through meh Kitty," Rogue said while carving some chicken off the bone.

"Like I said, no problem. So . . . who's the second sandwich for?" the bubbly girl pried. After receiving no answer from Rogue, Kitty pushed further. "Oh come on, Rogue. I just like saved you from having to get mustard and mayo out of your hair." So that was what the odd substance was . . .

"If ya must know its for Gambit," Rogue said curtly.

"The guy who kidnapped you?" Kurt demanded suddenly chiming in on the conversation. Rogue gave him a sideways glance and nodded as she poured on some of her special hot sauce. She figured the Cajun would appreciate it even if no one else in the house did. "I don't like zat guy. You ver almost eaten by an alligator because of him," Kurt growled.

"So . . . what's going on between you two that you are making him lunch?" Kitty demanded. Her voice had raised an octave in her excitement. She was probably already concocting daydreams of the two of them in her head. Rogue sighed as she reached into the cabinet in front of her for the aspirin bottle. She knew Kitty had been dying to ambush her with questions even since the day Remy strolled back into her life.

"Ah absorbed him durin' our trainin' simulation today. He's in the medic wing right now missin' lunch. Ah thought ah would bring him some food. That's all," Rogue said sternly as she poured two glasses of water.

"Are you coming to the training session today?" Kurt asked. Rogue took a bite out of her sandwich and nodded to her brother. This seemed to please him as he smiled broadly. Kurt was easy to please.

"How can you eat that?" Kitty demanded her voice full of trepidation. Rogue had paid the girl five bucks once to eat a spoonful of her sauce. Kitty had just about drunk all the water in the whole Institute and had complained that she could not taste anything for days.

"It's good. Want some, sugah?" Rogue asked with a wicked grin while holding out the other half of her sandwich to the shorter brunette.

"Uh no! I'll see you at the training session," Kitty said quickly before booking it out of the room. Rogue chuckled softly and Kurt gave her a confused look.

"I thought you hated this Gambit guy for kidnapping you," Kurt said trying to understand her.

Rogue took a huge gulp of water before answering, "Ah don't hate him. He helped meh escape my worries at that time. Ah don't know if he meant to, but he got meh back on track." Rogue explained. Kurt grew solemn remembering how his sister had been after the whole thing with their mother. Before she was kidnapped, Rogue had been thinking about leaving the Institute and the X-men. When they got her back she was different . . . more like her old self.

"Okay Rogue . . . I vill see you in a half hour," Kurt said before teleporting away. Rogue placed her empty plate and glass in the sink before caring Remy's lunch out of the kitchen and towards the medic wing.

Rogue was actually grateful to Remy for taking her away from the Institute and to New Orleans. She probably would have left permanently on her own if he had not done what he did. He may not have had the best of intentions, but in an odd weird way he _had_ helped her. On the way to the medic wing, Rogue ran into Beast. He stopped when he saw her with a large knowing smile on his face. He was wearing his white lab coat and a thick pair of glasses were perched high on his face.

"Rogue . . . is that for Remy?" he asked.

"Uh . . . yeah. How is he?" Rogue asked suddenly nervous. She knew that Mr. McCoy knew _exactly_ how Remy ended up in his medic wing.

"He's in a deep sleep. He woke up briefly, but he is really quite tired. I guess rooming with Bobby is not conducive to a good night sleep." Beast explained. Well that explained why Rogue had found him awake early this morning.

"Oh . . . okay. Ah'll just drop this off for him so he can eat it when he wakes up then." Rogue promised before heading to the medical room.

When she got there, Remy was indeed asleep just like Beast had said. He was lying on one of the beds curled up on his side. His expression was extremely peaceful and at easy. His hair was fanned all around his face. Rogue placed his lunch on the tray next to the bed, and pulled the aspirin out from her pocket. The Cajun was going to need it when he was fully awake. She then cautiously walked over to his bed side. Rogue wondered if he was really asleep or just playing possum. Signing, Rogue turned to leave only to be yanked into an abrupt stop since Remy had grabbed her wrist. She turned to glare at him. Remy yawned and rubbed his eye with his free hand.

Wrenching her arm free, Rogue growled, "Ah should have known ya were fakin', swamp rat." Remy grinned up at her. His eyes dancing even in the fake florescent lighting of the medical room.

"Chere . . . Remy don' know what you are talking bout. He has been deeply asleep . . . resting after that wonderful kiss you gave him." He muttered with a wink. Rogue snorted and rolled her eyes.

"That wasn't nothin'. Ah was just gainin' the upper hand by exploitin' yer weakness. Yer lunch is there, see ya later," she said and tried to leave yet again, only to be stopped by her fellow southerner again.

"Rogue stay, please." Remy requested. It was only the sincerity in his voice that made her turn around and sit on the bed a safe distance from him. Remy picked up half of the sandwich and Rogue watched in anticipation. She had only met one person who was able to handle her sauce and she wondered if Remy LeBeau would be the second. When he took a bite and chewed thoughtfully Rogue felt a smile tug at her lips.

"Its good chere . . . un petite bland, but good." He said jokingly while taking another large bite of his lunch. Rogue laughed softly, which gave the bed they were on a good shake. Remy grinned back at her and before Rogue could think, he had tucked a stray white hair behind her ear.

"Chere, has anyone ever told you dat you are très belle?" he asked. Rogue felt her cheeks redden. She sprang from the bed and headed towards the door before Remy could stop here again.

"Enjoy yer lunch Remy. Ah'm goin' ta be late for Logan's practice. See ya," she called as the door automatically closed behind her.

* * *

I just love Kitty. Her character is a riot. what do you think of the Rogue and Remy scene in the clinic? Remy thought he was clever pretending to be asleep. I love that Rogue tried to play it off that she was only the deliverer of the lunch, but Remy knew better. who elese would put spicy sauce on his chicken sandwich? Well in the next chapter I will give yoy a peak at the overall plot. Excited? I am. I really wanted to take my time an develop their relationship before throwing them into havoc. Well please let me know what you think!


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own X-men

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Wanda W : (8) Thanks for all your compliments. Yeah, Remy is not going to win over Rogue like he does with other women. She's special, and is playing hard to get, which is something I bet the cajun is not used to.

kataragirl11 : thanks. And yes, he thought he was clever.

Wanda W : (7) Hum . . . I'll explain it later. Yeah Rogue speaking with Remy's accent is funny. I love Hank's reaction too.

WolfFenrisulfr : aw thanks. Yeah, Kitty is dumbed down in the series, but as you said she is a computer whiz. I prefer her to bee a compromise between the two. She is not stupid, just a girl with a romantic heart and a valley girl accent.

jadeDino : thank you. yeah, the flirt cajun needes to be serious every once in a while.

The Duplicitous One (8) : thanks. I'm happy you are starting to like it more. I thought it would be sweet for her to make him some lunch since yes, she did put him there.

The Duplicitous One : (7) thanks. I don't think Remy's a jerk, flirt yes, but jerk not. And yeah Rogue can be stuborn, but there is a right place for that I think. If she's stuborn too much it can get irritating to read.

tfobmv18 : yeah I know Kitty can not possibly resist butting in a little in their relationship.

ChamberlinofMusic : thanks. and same here. I just love those two characters, Kitty and Kurt. Their are under Rogue and Remy of course and are all on the same level as Logan.

* * *

How they were all crammed into the small room overlooking the danger room Rogue could only begin to guess. There were so many more of them from when she first joined the x-men. Rogue wondered if eventually the Professor would have to build a new wing to house all the students. Wolverine was going over the session's goals and strategies while Rogue stood to his side with her arms folded across her chest. She knew she should be paying attention to Logan, Lord help her if he figured out she was tuning him out, but she had already been briefed earlier.

The students were standing in various clumps both listening and ignoring him. There was Kitty and Kurt, the veterans. Kitty had the dreamy look she only got when thinking about her on-again-off-again boyfriend Lance. Kurt was watching his tail swish back and forth about as entertained as a three year old chasing a butterfly. They were mostly hidden from Logan's gaze by the others. Bobby, Sam, Amara, Jubilee, Jamie, Ray, Roberto, Cassie, Alec, Kimberly, Lorallie, and Carter were standing relatively still and at least feigning attention. Out of the bunch, it was Cassie who caught Rogue's attention. The young frail blonde girl was rigidly stiff and Alec was looking at her with concern. Rogue moved from her position and approached the girl just as Logan stopped mid-sentence.

"Cassie," Rogue said hesitantly leaning down towards the girl with her arm slowly reaching out to her. The seer finally snapped out of it and looked about at the worried faces.

"What did you see, Cleo?" Logan asked using his nickname for her.

"You are not going to like it," she said directly to Rogue unblinking.

"Meh?" Rogue asked the girl standing from her slight crouched stance.

"Turn on the TV to channel three," Cassie said to Logan who quickly complied. Soon the screen turned to a tv station and then shortly to the news. Rogue watched in confusion as a familiar face appeared on the screen. It was a white woman in her early thirties with medium brown hair. Tears were streaming down her face as cameras flashed taking as many pictures as possible.

'Please, I just want my son back. He's just a small boy . . . whoever you are who took my boy from me, please give him back.' The woman on the tv sobbed. Rogue froze into place as she remembered the woman. She turned quickly with righteous furry intent on marching to the Professor' Office to demanded immediate action. Logan caught her by the arm halting her plans.

"What's wrong, Stripes?" he asked his grasp on her arm was firm, but gentle, merely restraining her. Rogue shook her head to clear her racing thoughts.

"That's Dorian's mother," she said pointing to the still blubbering woman on the screen. "Leach's mother," she said loudly for emphasis.

'_Rogue, please calm down. Come to my office'_ the Professor's voice said in Rogue's head.

Apparently Logan got his own set of directions from the Professor because in the next moment he said, "Okay training is cancelled for today. No one is to leave the premises until otherwise notified. No exceptions!" After a quick moment's thought, Rogue turned again to the young seer.

"Sugah," she said sweetly so as not to frighten her. "Did ya see where Dorian is?"

The girl sadly shook her head. "No, I just saw your upset reaction to seeing his mother on the news." She said apologetically before being steered away by her brother.

"Kid . . . let's go to Chuck and see what's up," Logan said in a soft voice. Rogue followed him quietly. That boy was no more than ten years old. He should be at home watching tv and eating junk food and getting fussed over by his protective mother.

All of the x-men adults with the addition of Kitty and Kurt were all gathered in the Professor's office. Rogue was surprised to find Remy sitting in one of the large chairs in front of the Professor's desk. She figured he would still be in the Medic wing. Scott was in the other chair leaning against his knees looking displeased. Rogue leaned against the wall next to Logan trying to hold back the current of questions and concerns brewing in her mind.

It did not help that Rogue had the boy's psyche in her head from the time she had absorbed him to defeat Apocalypse. Now, after a long period of being an indistinguishable voice in a sea of them, Dorian Leach was at the forefront of her thoughts. He was scared and crying out for his mother, which was making it hard for Rogue to keep back the tears threatening to spill out from her eyes. She knew that it was the psyche's reaction to learning of his real counterpart's predicament. However, Rogue could not get over the fact that he probably _was_ somewhere frightened and calling out for his mother just like he was doing in her head.

'_Rogue, focus on my voice. I can push him back if you want_,' Xavier offered. Rogue nodded wordlessly only dimly aware of the eyes on her. She felt Logan gently touch her forearm as Remy spun around in his chair in concern. This of course caused everyone else to focus in on her.

"Rogue, child, please don't fight me . . . relax." The Professor urged out loud. Rogue willed herself to follow his instructions. She heard Dorian's cries slowly soften till it was once again in unison with the steady hum of the ramblings of all the psyches in her mind.

"Stripes," Logan said holding her up when she swayed slightly. Kurt had started to move towards her from his seat ontop of the file cabinet, but Rogue held up her hand.

"Ah fahne," she assured and stood firmly on her own two feet again. After a hesitant moment Logan released her. "Professa, please go on . . . time is critical." She reminded.

Behind his desk the Professor nodded gravely. "As I am sure most of you are aware of, Dorian Leach has been kidnapped from his home," he explained and let the information sink in for everyone. "His mother discovered him missing early this morning. I already attempted to search for him using Cerebro, but that endeavor had yielded no results. For some reason or another he cannot be found. As you know this could mean that he is not using his powers or is simply in a location the Cerebro cannot penetrate. I have contacted his mother and she has welcomed our help. A team will go out to their home and will try and learn whatever they can. Scott, Jean, Beast, Storm, Logan, and myself will all be leaving," the Professor said.

"Wait, Professa . . . ah would like ta go with ya," Rogue interrupted and received a slight glare from Scott. She glared right back. She had every right to interject her thoughts. Apparently she had not bruised his ego enough. He was the first to break the stare and turned back to the Professor. Charles leaned against his desk and stared at Rogue with a grim look across his face.

"Rogue, I understand that you feel . . . strongly about young Leach, but I need you here. Someone has to stay behind and take care of the students. While we are on this mission you will be solely responsible for them. Mr. LeBeau, can I count on you to provide Rogue assistance in accomplishing that task?" he demanded while turning his knowing eyes on the resident Cajun.

"O' course you can count on me, Professa." Remy said with a short bob of his head.

"Kurt, Kitty, you are also needed to help Rogue in any way that you can." He said to the soon to be adults. Both seemed to understand the importance of his request. Kitty nodded enthusiastically.

"Of coruse ve vill help Rogue," Kurt said to the Professor, but his eyes were on his sister promising his support. Worry was the major emotion evident on his face. Rogue nodded acknowledging his promised assistance. She wondered if she was ready for this job . . . even with all the help. The gravity of it stunned her into silence. Did the Professor trust her _that_ much? '_Sorry to pry, but yes Rogue, I trust you. I believe you are more than capable of handling being the temporary guardian of the Institute and the students. I will be completely reachable if you should need any assistance_,' his voice assured her in her head.

"Now, everyone is dismissed except Rogue and Logan. Those of you going on this mission, be ready in and half an hour at the jet hanger. We will leave as soon as all are gathered. Pack a light bag with only essentials for a few days . . . a week at most." Charles said. Rogue could not help but notice the Cajun's eyes firmly set on her as he filed out of the room. Rogue could only speculate about the meaning behind _that_ look, and surprisingly his psyche in her mind was being uncharacteristically tightlipped. Soon everyone filed out leaving only Rogue and her father figure behind.

"Sit down Stripes . . . we have some things to go over before Chuck and I leave," Logan said and came to stand on the side of the Professor's desk. Rogue silently complied knowing that she was about to be briefed about the details involved with being in charge at the mansion. Who better for the task than the two men before her?

* * *

See, I told you there was an overall plot. Of course, Leach being taken does not show much of a plot yet, but its there. Gotta say I just love Cassie. The other younger kids will be more prominant in future chapters. Its gotta be hard for Rogue with all her phyches. Its not something that was greatly touched upon in the x evolution series, and something that facinates me. So, what's going to happen when all the cats are away from the Institute? Will all the mice try and play? How will Rogue handle her leadership role? How will Remy help her? And why was he staring at her as he left? Next chapter Rogue will learn more about the Cajun. How will she react to his information. And what about poor Dorian Leach? How is he part of the bigger picture? Lol lots of questions . . . til next time! Please review!


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own x-men

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Shadow Hand Zealot : Thanks, and yeah I noticed that too after I posted the chapter. It seemed not matter how many times I edit it something always gets past me.

The Duplicitous One : Rogue could probably use some good news, but you'll have to wait and see. You'll find out the reasons Dorian was kidnapped later . . . in future chapters.

ChamberlinofMusic : yeah, and thanks.

WolfFenrisulfr : I will try and make them longer. This ch is visually longer because of the dialogue. The next one will be longer, but I can't promise they all will be. Yeah that would be a great chance for Remy to make his move. After all, Logan is gone so there isn't anyone to gut him for his attempts.

tfobmv18 : uh good question . . . the whole story will mostly be from Rogue's perspective, but once in a while someone else's pov will come in (line Remy's in ch 2) when needed. We might get a glimpse of what the other x-men are doing.

AshmandaLC : thanks. and that's great. I'll check out your story.

Wanda W : The reasoning behind Dorian will be revealed, and it should be a surprise (if I do it right). You'll get more hints in the near future. Yeah that is a lot to put on Rogue. It would be nice for the students to help out.

jadeDino : thanks. hum . . . cool. Not sure if you are right of course.

* * *

Rogue stared at the large black jet as the x-men prepared to board. The Professor had briefed all the students after cramming week's worth of information into her head . . . and quiet literally. Logan had insisted that she absorb a bulk of information from him since he felt that would be the only way she would be adequately prepared. He was the first to head onto the jet along with Storm who was slightly supporting him.

"By Stripes," he said and placed his hand on her shoulder and giving it a light squeeze.

"Don't hesitate to call child if you run into any trouble," Storm said before the couple entered the jet.

Beast trailed slightly behind looking uncertain. He placed a long printed out paper in her hand and Rogue glanced down at a string of doctor names and numbers and well as a description as of what each doctor specialized in.

"If you have any medical emergencies all these doctors are mutants. Just give them my name and they will be more than happy to come down and assist." He said. Rogue nodded and carefully folded the paper. He gave Rogue a light pat on head before also taking his place inside the jet. A loud poof sound came from Rouge's left and she was nearly knocked over by her brother carrying several packed bags.

"Oh, sorry Rogue," he said before proofing away most likely inside the jet to drop off the bags. Rogue coughed at his departure and fanned the air. That was when Scott cautiously approached her. Rogue resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She could just imagine the speech he was preparing.

"Now, Rogue. I have faith in you. You have been well trained, and I think you are up to the job. Just remember-" he was saying only to be interrupted by his girlfriend.

"Scott, I think we are in a hurry," she said sweetly. Rogue mouthed a thank you to the girl as Cyclops got on the jet with a small huff.

"Uh . . . Rogue I know you wanted to come . . ." the red head stuttered. Rogue only shook her head and smiled.

"It's no problem red . . . just do your best to find that kid," Rogue said still fully insink with Logan's charming personality. Jean nodded solemnly before following her boyfriend. The Professor wheeled in just after Jean with a small grin on his face, which seemed out of place.

"Since everyone has seen fit to offer you some sort of advice, I will simply say good bye," he said just as the lift for his wheelchair descended. A second later Kurt had teleported back to her side.

"Good luck, Chuck. We'll be fine here," Rogue said with conviction just as she felt Wolverine's psyche settle back in with the rest of them.

"Good luck, Rogue," Xavier said as he disappeared into the jet. A second later Storm started up the jet and Kurt teleported Rogue and himself a safe distance from the taking off jet. Rogue felt a little afraid that she had to much responsibility.

"Kurt . . . would ya mind checkin' in on everyone? Ah sort of want ta think fo' a minute, sug." She asked her brother. Kurt only stared into her eyes trying to read the emotions that were typically visible there.

"Sure thing, schwester," he said before poofing away.

Rogue sighed as she left the hanger. She prayed that the x-men would be successful and would find something that led to the boy. Rogue knew that his chances were _not_ looking good. With every ticking minute that passed the probability of finding young Dorian dwindled significantly . . . and he was a mutant, which could not be counted in his favor.

She was so deep in thought that Rogue did not notice that she was not alone. Rogue was completely unaware that she was being followed while she slowly made the long trip to the main part of the mansion. Despite the fact that she was distracted, her instincts kicked in the second her silent stalker grabbed her shoulder. Rogue swung and executed a perfect back kick.

"Chere, calme-toi! (calm yourself)" Remy said while he held her threatening leg a safe distance from his chest. Rogue did not even fake remorse as she glared at him while blowing away an errant stand of white hair.

"Ah ain't gonna kick ya so let go o' mah leg," she spat. She was slightly miffed that he had snuck up on her . . . although . . . for as preoccupied as her mind had been he could have been making a ruckus and she still would not have noticed. Remy released her leg and ran his gloved fingers though his hair.

"Désolé, chere. Remy did not mean t'startle ya," he said. Rogue could detect that he was being honest so she relaxed her stiff stance. She also wondered when she had decided to stop correcting him when he called her chere.

With a small shrug Rogue replied, "No problem . . . did ya need somethin' Remy?" she asked trying to be pleasant.

"Non, mais (but) Remy wanted t' talk wit ya," he explained. Rogue bit gently on her bottom lip. Her first instinct was to tell him she did not _want_ to talk and to stay away from her. But a part of her knew that was not entirely true. Yes, she did not want to talk. However, she did not want him to stay away from her.

"Ya got till we get ta the main part o' de mansion," she said sternly. That was still giving him a lot of time since they were in the most remote part of the Institute's property. It gave him at least ten minutes. Remy's face light up and he offered her a huge smile. He then gestured for her to lead the way with his hand. Rogue started down the cold cement tunnel that ran underneath the mansion with Gambit walking peacefully alongside her.

"Remy was wonderin' what happened back in the Professa's office." He stated. Rogue turned to glare at the taller and apparently crazy man. Did he honestly expect her to answer that?

"What makes ya think ah want ta talk bout that wit ya?" she demanded hotly.

"Remy knows dat ya were upset . . . dat ya were bout ta cry. Remy just concerned dat's all." He told her.

"Well ya don't need ta be concerned. Ah am fahne," she sold him curtly hoping he would get the point. No such luck apparently because a second later Remy grabbed her forearm.

"Rogue," he said her name as if chiding a child. He even wiggled a finger at her. "And here Remy thought we were making progress, oui?" he said as if he was exasperated and stating the obvious. He did relinquish his hold on her arm at her death stare.

"_What_ progress?" she demanded.

"Did ya forget de kiss, chere?" he asked with a twinkle in his eyes. He was going to be seeing stars if he kept it up, Rogue thought.

"That meant nothin'. How did ya know ah was upset anyways, Cajun? Yer back was ta meh." She asked and began heading towards the mansion once again. Trust the sly swamp rat to stall for more time.

"So . . . if Remy explains dat t' ya . . . will ya explain what was goin' on?" Remy bargained. Rogue cursed her curiosity in her head. It was going to get her killed one of these days.

"Fahne . . . ya first, swamp rat," she said. Rogue was many things, but a fool she was not.

"It is simple, Remy is an empath. He can feel what people are feelin' . . . sometimes. It's not a strong power and only works when a person if feeling extremely emotional . . . and ya were _very_ upset, chere." He said and remained quiet waiting in evident anticipation for Rogue's reaction. Rogue was completely shocked . . . it did explain a lot though.

"Can ya . . . control or influence other's emotions?" she demanded thinking of Alec's powers. Remy's face scrunched up slightly. Rogue could tell that he had not wanted her to ask _that_ particular question.

"Oui . . . mais only avec (with) femmes (women)." He replied sheepishly. It all made sense now . . . going as far back to their first encounter . . . that fight. Rogue had always wondered how she could just drool over him while he placed an explosive in her hand.

"Ya filthy swamp rat!" she snarled thoroughly enraged. Rogue swung at him intent on knocking him upside his head, but Gambit ducked from her attacked and took a quick step back with his hands up in the air in a defensive position.

"Rogue!" he yelled. She ignored his pleas and attempted to do a roundhouse kick to his chest. However, Remy surprised her by spinning towards her. Before she could pull herself together and attack again, he had her pinned against the wall face first. This was becoming a bad habit for them . . . plus it was just sad. She had been training for _years_. Perhaps it was because a part of her _wanted_ to hear him out. The Remy in her head was begging for her to just listen. Rogue hated to admit it, but she liked the feel of his body pressed against hers. He was making it awfully hard to stay mad at him.

"Let meh go," she snarled contrary to her current train of thought.

"Non, not till ya hear me out. Rogue, I have never influenced your emotions since I joined de x-men," he said. He had not referred to himself in the third person . . . "Rogue . . . I would never do somethin' like that t' ya now." He promised.

"Why not?" she whispered.

"Ye know why, chere," he said even though Rogue had no clue. "Rogue, please let us be amis, non? Remy is not your enemy . . . anymore," he said.

"Okay," Rogue said to him. He was off her instantly. They stared at one another for a few minutes before Rogue began heading once more to the mansion.

"Rogue . . . ye promised," Remy reminded her to which Rogue groaned audibly.

"Uh . . . do ah have ta?" she begged like a child and began dragging her feet. Remy gave a chuckle at her minor tantrum, but nodded his head. There was no way he was going to let her get out of it that easily.

"Oui, chere" he said with mirth bubbling in his voice.

* * *

Okay . . . I can't believe this is the 10th chapter. Its the prefect place to have a shift in our adorable couple's actions towards eachother. So they are going to be friends. I wonder how long that will last. If Remy has his way they will be more than friends as soon as possible. So the x-men are gone. This was an intense Rogue and Remy ness. Rogue figures out Remy's other power and is ticked. It seems our southern belle can't stay mad at him for very long though. Next time: how will Rogue dead with being in charge? What could possibly go wrong when you are responsible for a mansion full of tean mutants? Please review!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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edbegaro23 : thanks.

Wanda W : yeah, he's doing remarkably well, but that's to be expected.

The Duplicitous One : Rogue doesn't like to be manipulated. He is still breathing, so she didn't react as badly as she could have. And yeah . . . one adult (because Remy barely counts as an adult sometimes) against a whole house of teen mutants . . . has to be bad.

jadeDino : oh well. I'm kinda happy that I'm not predictable . . . yet. Yeah he admitted to using his power on her, but not since joining the x-men. thanks for reviewing

AshmandaLC : thank you

tfobmv18 : yeah that was why she was upset. he's a kid, so she's worried about him.

ChamberlinofMusic : thanks, and yeah they are worriers. I try to put some romyness in every chapter . . . won't always happen, but i can try.

Valnar : thanks, and I;m surprized too. But as you've noticed (since this chapter took a few days) that's not always going to be the case.

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Along the outskirts of Chinatown, New York, Emma Gracelee made her long trek from the Italian pizzeria she worked at to her small and crummy apartment complex. She was a lanky looking girl that seemed to need a good helping of home cooked food. It was a good thing that she was so tall because it allowed people to believe she was eighteen. She was a plain girl who blended in no matter where she went. Her hair was a mass of messy auburn curls and her skin was faire like fresh snow. She had a clearly evident widow's peak since she wore her hair up constantly, and her eyes were a dark steel grey and held no spark of life. As the wind blew she pulled her old and worn black coat closer to her body to conserve heat.

A year ago, she had been a whole different person. She had a loving family . . . a father who held a high position in the Federal government, and her mother was a preschool teacher. A year ago, her name had been Sarah Prince. Emma had been her great Grandmother's name and Gracelee was the last name of her first boyfriend. However, Sarah was dead. She died on her sixteenth birthday and soon after Emma was born like a rising phoenix from the ashes. Emma was a mutant, and the Prince family did _not_ have a daughter with strange and frightening powers.

Emma tried not to remember that horrible day that ended her past, but it was a favorite past time of her mind . . . like a bedtime story. She tried to push her memories away and stay alert . . . her neighborhood was not the safest. When she was new to it she had jumped at every creepy noise. Yes, Emma was a mutant. Her power was to alter reality to her choosing. Most of the time it required no thought, only a wish. When she opened her birthday present that day, she was disappointed to see a book about applying to colleges. Then she had wished in her heart for what she had _really_ wanted. For weeks, she had been begging for an ipod. Everyone she knew had one, but her parents thought it was a frivolous gift. As soon as she had made her wish the book glowed with an eerie purplish light and then when is dissipated an ipod was in its place.

The Prince's had tried everything . . . they took her to experimental doctors and specialists in the government. Somewhere the record of Sarah Prince was on file that explained her . . . less than desirable mutation. A month after her birthday, she heard the Princes discussing handing her over to the government who was intrigued by her ability. That was when Emma packed a few belongings and fled to Manhattan where her drug addict cousin lived. He had gotten her a fake ID, and was nice enough to help her find the small apartment that she now lived in. It seemed that being a mutant ran in the family since her cousin, Derik was one too.

Emma turned down the last dark alley before she would reach the safety of home. She was half way through it when a strange looking man pushed himself off the brick alley wall. He was her height and looked like a homeless person. He smiled in a leering way that made Emma want to run to her building. She could even _see_ it. The next thing she knew, Emma felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck and then her body went limp as a second person behind her caught her falling form. A thick built woman with long black hair looked down at the girl in her arms.

"Let him know we got her," she barked to her companion while lowering the cattle prod.

* * *

With a content sigh, Rogue laid her head back on her pillow and let her aching body settle down and relax. This week had been the most stressful and demanding week of her life. With the adults still gone, following leads and clues about Dorian's kidnapping, meant that Rogue was the person to go to. Not a single day had passed without _something _happening. The students were immensely restless due to the lockdown at the Institute. They were only allowed to school and back again until the Leech thing was solved. The Professor was worried that his students might become targets if Leech's kidnapping as a plot to take mutant children.

Monday, Rogue got called down to her former school to pick up Jamie, who had eaten too much and had gotten sick. As soon as she called in one of the doctors Hank had suggested she had to go back and pick up Amara who had gotten into a fight with a girl in her English class. Tuesday, at dinner Tabitha had gotten angry at Kitty over something involving mac-and-cheese and had blown up half the table. She was still waiting for the repair guy. Wednesday, Rogue had to track down Bobby and Ray since they ditched school to go to the arcade. Thursday, Rogue had to pick up Kimberly who had frightened her class and teacher in gym when she turned astral after getting hit in the head by a volley ball. It seemed that everyone expected her to have all the answers to their problems from boyfriend and girlfriend issues to how to solve number five in their math homework. Rogue was looking forward to the other adults to return.

Now it was six on a Friday night and things were going too well. The students only gave a small fight over the fact that they were doomed to spend the weekend in the Institute. But Rogue had diffused that by ordering pizzas and making it into a movie night. She even threw in the fact that there would be no danger-room sessions this weekend if Logan did not return. Those things seemed to appease them, and Rogue took advantage of the rare moment of quiet to rest . . . even if it was only for five minutes.

The Professor checked in daily to see how Rogue and the students were doing. He also told her the progress of the search for Leech. It seemed that at the boy's house, Mr. McCoy had found some evidence . . . scientific evidence to suggest that the Dorian had been taken from his bedroom, and that his attackers originated from Washington State. The team was there now tracking down leads and investigating to their fullest. It also seemed that Cerebro had registered Leech using his power in Idaho, a few days ago, which meant that the boy was miraculously alive.

Rogue sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. She wanted with every fiber of her being to go to sleep, but duty and a sense of obligation made her sit up in her room. She needed to do a walk and ensure that the perimeters were secure, after all technology could be tampered with. Therefore, Rogue rose from her blissfully comfortable bed and snatched her gloves off her desk. She quickly put her growing hair into a ponytail on the short trip to the balcony.

With a fluid and graceful move, Rogue leapt off the balcony and landed on the ground below on firm feet. She knew that if she went anywhere near downstairs someone would drag her in to watch movies . . . probably Kitty or her brother. They were both always trying to include her in such activities. Rogue moved forward and took to the trees intent on circling the property before taking a long bubble bath in her room.

Rogue had not been on her patrolling for very long when movement ahead caught her attention. Someone was attempting to leave the mansion. Rogue ran as quickly and quietly over to the fleeing figure. Whoever it was there were dressed to blend in . . . a black hoodie and canvas pants. Rogue changed direction to head the person off before they reached the fence.

"All right, ah caught ya," Rogue said as the figure can into view in front of her. "Now take off yer hood." Rogue demanded placing her hands firmly on her hips. She was happy that she had checked the perimeters. If something happened to one of the students while they were in her care . . . well Rogue would never be able to forgive herself. After waiting a few minutes the escapee lifted their hands and pushed the hood off their head. Rogue gasped out loud thoroughly shocked to see Kitty standing in front of her.

"Rogue, I need to leave . . . I know for safely we are not supposed to like leave, but . . . I need to." The short brunette muttered rather quickly. She was clearly upset, so Rogue took and instinctive step towards the girl.

"Why?" Rogue asked. If Kitty was in trouble or needed help of some sort there was no way Rogue was letting her handle it alone.

"Well . . . you know Lance and I have been . . . arguing, right?" Kitty asked. Rogue's eyebrows knitted together as she frowned. She should have known this was a _Lance_ thing. Only he could drive her normally rule following friend to break them.

"Yah . . . ya told me y'all have been havin' some issues." Rogue said. The thing went beyond simple "issues" now. It seemed the couple could not have a single encounter without a fight. It seemed from an outsider perspective that Lance had given up, but Kitty was giving it all she had to keep their relationship together.

"I called him today . . . he knows that we are like not supposed to leave the Institute . . . but he wants me to go over to the Brotherhood. He said 'what was the point to having a girlfriend if you are alone Friday night'. He's right Rogue . . . I want to go see him. He's just pushing me away because he knows I'm graduating soon . . . he knows that I'm applying to some out of state schools . . ." she said and trailed off. Rogue could hear the sad tone and could see that her friend was upset from her hunched shoulders. "Rogue, I know this is a lot of ask, but please let me leave." Kitty asked and fixed Rogue with her sad puppy dog face.

Rogue wanted to say she was not going to help. She did not _hate_ Lance, but he was giving the young brunette too much grief as far as the southerner was concerned. She wanted to tell Kitty that she was better off without the scumball and to just dump his sorry ass if he could not be there for her. Rogue wanted to do a lot of things, but in the end it was not really her damn business. In the end, her only job was to be there to comfort the girl when he eventually broke her heart.

A long drawn out sign escaped Rogue's lips. "Look . . . ya can't leave. But . . . if you called him and convinced him to come . . . ah could pretend not to notice ya sneaking him into yer room."

Kitty squealed in delight and launched herself at Rogue enveloping Rogue in a tight hug. "Thanks Rogue, I like _so_ totally owe you!" Rogue patted the girls head twice feeling slightly awkward being hugged. Kitty did eventually let her go.

"Kitty, I'm serious . . . ya are not ta leave." Rogue reiterated.

Kitty nodded saying, "I swear! Now, I'm going to go call Lance. Thanks again!" the small girl said before running back towards the mansion. Rogue watched her go feeling worried in the pit of her stomach.

"Dat was nice of ya, chere," a voice said behind Rogue. She should have known he was close by . . . after all she had not seen him all day. After their so called "truce" to being friend not a day went by without Rogue running into the Cajun at some point if not many times. He seemed to be stalking around every corner. She had found it annoying until today, when she had not seen him at all.

"Hi, swamp rat." She greeted before turning to face him. She was surprised to find him in the tree behind her. He was crouched on top of one of the branches without using his hands for balanced. It was quite impressive. He offered her a smirk before jumping off the branch and coming to stand next to her.

"Did ya miss dis Cajun aujourd'hui" he asked as he leaned towards her face. Rogue glared at him and took a step back. He had no concept of personal space, which was not something Rogue usually had to deal with since most people avoided getting too close to her. Rogue snorted as her response. No way was she admitting to that.

"Ah barely tolerate yer annoying ass," she said. Remy reached out and ran his gloved fingers though her hair. Rogue tried swatted his hand away, but he had already let go of her hair. That was another thing Rogue was getting used to since they decided to be friends . . . Remy was always trying to touch her . . . well not skin on skin of course.

"Rogue, ya wound me! Ya know ya really like his homme," he said with his charming voice as he took a step further.

"No, ah don't" she growled. Remy moved in even closer, and Rogue stood her ground.

"Yer lips say non, mais yer eyes say oui" he said and snatched his hands around her waist and yanked him to her while smiling. He was too much, and despite his intrusion upon her person, all Rogue could do was smile back. She tried not to think too much on her hands on his firm chest. She loved the mischievous glint to his eyes as he looked down at her prouder than a kid with a new toy. She was in so much trouble . . . a poor sheep charmed by a killer wolf. Without warming, Rogue used her hands on his chest to violently push him away from her. Remy barely even lost his balance as he righted himself with even a bigger smile than the one before.

"Remy loves it when yer rough," he said in a deep husky voice followed by a suggestive eyebrow giggle.

"Yer crazy, Remy" she said.

"Come on chere, lets go watch a movie avec les enfants (with the kids)," he said and took her hand leading her back to the mansion. Rogue laughed as she allowed herself to be directed . . . completely unaware that they were being watched by a person crouched just on the other side of the Institute property.

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Hint: remever emma. she's going to come up again. who are these people kidnapping mutants? What is their purpose? And can the c-men figure it out before things get ugly. A warning: later . . . this story might get a little violent . . . these are bad guys and just like in reality people will get hurt. So don't be surpuzed if someone dies . . . I don't want to spoil anything, but if people are offended by some violence in a story (not a lot I promise since I don't like too much) then you have been warned in advance. Oh well. So what do you think? So far Rogue has been able to keep things together, but will that continue? Will the students revolt? And what about Remy and Rogue? It seems that they are getting close, something that the Cajun must be loving. Well please review and let me know what you think.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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jadeDino : nope. Not a fan of her's either. Ypu'll have to wait and see who the mastermind is. WolfFenrisulfr : yeah. gotta love him. If anything he is persistant, which is what I think is the key to Rogue. No one has ever tried so hard before. kataragirl11 : thank you, and good. I rpomise it won't be overly violent . . . I hope. tfobmv18 : thanks. You'll have to wait and see Valnar : thanks. Not sure why they are coming out so fast. I guess I'm too excited . . . The Duplicitous One : thanks and you will AshmandaLC : thank you ChamberlinofMusic : thanks. yeah Rogue is doing well. I think she's a natural teacher. Understanding but firm.

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The entire x-men clan stood in front of Joe's Paint War. It was a large warehouse sized building dedicated solely to paint ball. Rogue groaned . . . why had she let the Cajun talk her into this again? He had suggested the previous night to take all the students out for some fun . . . to let off their steam in an controlled safe environment. Somehow that cunning thief had convinced her it was a brilliant idea. She had even called the Professor, who had suggested they rent the place out for a couple of hours to prevent outsiders from posing a danger. Now, looking at the enormity of the place . . . Rogue was beginning to second guess the decision. She really _did_ hate that swamp rat!

As if sensing he was a part of his thoughts, Remy came up behind the southern gal and locked his arm with hers. "J'adore yer tee-shirt chere." He whispered in her ear.

Rogue looked down with a grown. It had been the student's ideas that it be girls vs. boys paint war. Rogue had been fine with that. It was when Amara suggested that they wear pink and boys blue that Rogue had to protest. It took Kitty phasing her into one of her own pink tee-shirts and phasing it back into place every time Rogue tried to take it off for her to agree to wear the damn thing. Unlike the rest of the girls, Rogue only wore a single article of pink. Everyone else wore pink pants and skirts. Underneath the muted pink shirt, Rogue had on a long-sleeved black shirt and dark blue jeans.

"Ya too swamp rat," she said taking in his tight blue tee-shirt. He had also like her refused to wear from head to toe one color and had put on a pair of black jeans. His arms were protected by an old and worn long-sleeved black shirt. He gave her a wink as Rogue turned to address everyone.

"Y'all be on yer best behavior. Now the rules," she announced, which earned her a loud grown from the audience behind her. "Rule number one: no property destruction. We are leaving this place standing! So now blowin' things up. Rule two: hits ta the legs and arms don't count, but everything else does. Once yer out yer out. Rule three: no one leaves the property. There is a bathroom here so that is not an excuse. Rule four: have fun." Rogue said and turned to knock on the door.

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Rogue stealthily crouched through the maze. The Cajun had picked an extraordinary place. The owner, whose name was ironically Mike ,not Joe, was not an anti-mutant. He did not care that a school full of them had rented his place for three hours . . . all he cared was that they paid up front. He did not even complain when kids were using powers left and right . . . in a non-destructive way of course. Rogue was even amazed at the equipment. The paint-ball guns were not that stunning, but it was the arm bands that made the game more fun. Rouge wore two: a red arm band and a black one. It was a complicated system, but easy to understand. The red arm band corresponded to her team, and the black one corresponded to Remy's team. With each player that went out a light on the arm band of that team would go out. From looking at her arm, Rogue could see that Casie and Jubilee had gotten out. For the boys it was Jamie and Carter sitting on the bench. Rogue herself had gotten Carter out.

The coarse consisted of maze after maze and the building was dark. Strobe lights flashed randomly and made it hard to see properly. Loud music blasted from the speakers. It was a good mix and Rogue found herself totally submersed into the game despite her initial hesitation. She made her way slowly and checked every corner and ceiling before proceeding. Her pick shirt was covered in dirt . . . something Rogue had done on purpose. Those pink shirts were like bright flags in this place. Rogue was holding still when she caught Bobby slowly stalking towards Tabitha and Amara. He shot both girls in the back before Rogue shot him high on his chest. She smiled as she ducked behind a tall wall. Glancing down at her wrist band she notes who was still left in the game. In the few moments it had taken her to shoot Bobby, several people on both sides had gotten out . . . now Kurt, Remy, Kitty, and herself were all that was left. They had been in the place for a little over two hours.

Rogue smelled the rotten eggs and dodged as blue paint splattered on the ground where she had been. Rogue whirled around aiming her gun high looking for her brother. She was smiling broadly and trying her hardest not to have too much fun . . . after all she was in danger of getting attacked. Rogue moved cautiously; looking around wildly knowing he could come at her from anywhere. She heard Kurt's laugh behind her. Rogue pivoted and shot her gun three times as Kurt's fire came at her. Rogue felt sadness. She had wanted to go after the Cajun. However, just as the blue paint was about to make contact it moved right through her and hit the wall behind Rogue harmlessly. Kitty smiled as she rose from the ground. Rouge grined at the girl at her side. She had perfect timing.

"Let's like split up and look for Gambit . . . he's all that's left of the boys," Kitty called. Rogue nodded and watched as her friend phased through a wall. Rogue stalked forward practically tingling with excitement. She was extremely pleased she had a chance to take out Remy. But, she had to stay alert, he was no amateur.

Rogue weaved in an out at a slow pace using her danger-room training to her benefit. A vibrating in her pocket made Rogue stop. Who was calling her now? Yanking the cell phone from her back pocket, Rogue flipped it open.

"Hello," she yelled hoping not to attract any unwanted attention from her screaming. It was difficult to hear over the noise so Rogue plugged her opposite ear.

"_Rogue, sorry to interrupt your fun with the students, but I have some news_," the Professor said on the other end.

"Professa? Did y'all find him?" she asked feeling excited.

"_No, I'm afraid not . . . but we have narrowed it down to several abandoned warehouses in Washington. We are going to inspect then one by one. I feel good that we are on the right tract. I'm calling to tell you that Scott and Ororo will be returning. The rest of us can handle the situation here, and I'm worried about you and the students. You have done remarkably well_," he said in a voice that Rogue could not doubt. If Scott was coming back she needed to fix that table . . .

"Thank ya, Professa . . ." Rogue said and felt her throat become tight.

"_I am serious, Rogue. You had a lot of pressure put on you, and you handled the obligation beautifully_." He said.

"Thanks again . . . when are they coming back?" Rogue asked. As soon as she was done here she was going to call that carpenter again about the table and chew him out.

"_Oh, and Rogue before I go_," Charles said with a laugh on the edge of his lips. "_Sam said he's coming around noon tomorrow . . . Scott and Ororo should be back at six . . . plenty of time for him to fix the table._" Rogue opened and closed her mouth . . . you can't get anything past a telepath.

"How did ya know?" she asked astonished. Rogue had no idea he had _that_ kind of range.

"_He left a message on the answering machine_." Charles said now laughing openly.

"Oh . . ." Rogue mumbled. She probably should have guessed that.

"_Good bye, Rogue . . . enjoy your game_," he said and hung up. Rogue closed her phone and slipped it back into her pocket. Looking down at her arm band she swore under her breath. Kitty's light was out meaning that the Cajun had shot her friend. Now it was all up to Rogue.

"Took ya long enough, chere. Remy though ya were _never_ getting off de phone," the southern said to Rogue's left. Rogue had only begun to raise her weapon when Gambit tackled her down to the ground. Rogue began to buck trying to get the thief off her while kicking and slapping. She managed to hit him a few times before Remy pinned her hands above her head.

"Yer supposed ta shot meh not staddle meh!" Rogue growled. Remy was grinning like a cocky jerk.

"Non, Remy won not ya, Rogue. He gets ta make de rules. Besides . . . ya know ya like it, chere." He said with his breath hot on her face. Rogue felt her cheeks going red and she looked away trying not to look into his eyes.

"Ah do not!" she said. Remy laughed at this. "Well, we can't stay like this all night," Rogue pointed out.

"Hum," Remy said nuzzling her hair and managing not the make skin contact. "Remy don' know bout dat. He certainly could stay here all night."

"Get off meh ya crazy Cajun!" Rogue practically shouted.

"Remy will get up if ya promise ta give da winner a kiss," he said wickedly. Rogue chocked at his request. She looked for his eyes hoping to see that he was joking, but his black and red eyes were completely serious.

"No, ya crazy foul! Now let meh go!" she shouted back and wiggled in his grasp. Rogue knew she should be trying a lot harder to get away . . . she knew she could get away _if_ she wanted.

"Non, promise." He repeated.

"Okay fahne!" Rogue said in a huff. Gambit smiled as he slowly got up off Rogue. However, before he could blink, she had whipped her gun into her suddenly free hand and had shot the Cajun at close range in the chest. She was grinning wildly as Remy gave a loud yell. He was so close that some paint splattered onto Rogue as well. She was laughing hysterically as Gambit's light on the arm bands went out. A second later the lights on the building came on and the blaring music softened.

"Mais, Remy won!" the man from Louisiana said while pouting to the southern belle. Then he shrugged off his lost good naturedly. "At least Remy get a kiss, non?" he said suddenly brightening and standing from his crouch over Rogue.

"Ah said ah would kiss that winner Cajun . . . ye lost." She said between laughs. This statement had Gambit back to frowning. He gentle touched where he shot her. Rogue got to her feet and headed for the exit as Remy trotted behind her pouting like a three year old.

"Dat hurt ya know," he mumbled as they came in view of the others. The girls were cheering and hollering while the boys growled and sulked.

"Ah, sugah . . . want a kiss on the boo-boo?" Rogue said while placing her hands on her hips and cocking them towards her fellow southerner.

Smiling, Gambut said, "Oui!" and held his arms out to Rogue.

Rogue turned back to the students finding several of them watching including Tabitha. "Hey, Tabby, Remy wants a kiss," she yelled before running away from the Cajun who was trying to snatch her into his arms. Rogue jogged towards Kitty and Kurt who were staring at her as if she had grown another head.

"Hey everyone, ice-cream on Remy on the way back!" she screamed before charging towards the van before the Cajun could protest.

* * *

Can I just say how much I love this chapter. I have always wanted to go to one of those places. Never found one near my home though . . . shooting my friend with painball sounds fun. I love how Rogue is totally relaxed and just having fun. Its not something she usually allows herself and its something that only out Cajun can bring out of her. They are just too cute together. Poor remy. He thought he won . . . but let that be a lesson to him not to count his chicken or to underestimate a woman. Rogue seems comfortable with him so does that mean their interaction is going to kick it up a notch? Well yes probably, but Rogue would not be Rogue if she did not tease him the whole way. So, let me know what you think. This chapter was a fund and upbeat one. Even in dark times you need a little comical relief. To come: Scott and Storm come back, and the x-men in Washinton state learn something about the kidnappers. Please review!


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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Valnar : yeah . . . I can't seem to stop writing . . . I'm scaring me too. I need a support group of something . . . "Hi my name is dancingtilsunset and I cannot stop updating," Anyways, thanks for reviewing.

Wanda W : (12) : thank you. Yeah . . . I almost had the professor tell her that Rmey was behind her before hanging up . . . but I decided that that would make him too powerful. It would have been funny though. And yeah, poor Remy. He has made some remarkable progess with Rogue . . . just not all the progress he wants.

Wanda W : (11) and thanks. yeah, Rogue's doing very well. You will have to wait about Emma.

ChamberlinofMusic : yeah, Rogue can be a funny girl. Remy had to have know she was giving in too easy. Yeah Rogue is going to figut, but Remy is not going to give up.

tfobmv18 : thanks

The Duplicitous One : yeah. scott can spoil the fun

jadeDino : yeah same here. I have always wanted to go and do something like that. Sigh . . . that would be so much fun.

* * *

Scott Summers and Ororo Munroe returned to the mansion two hours earlier than anyone had expected them. Rogue was happy that Sam the repair guy had been quick and had only taken an hour. It was bad enough that the Professor knew about the mishap with the dining room table . . . Scott did _not_ need to know. So, Rogue was no longer solely in charge, which suited her just fine. She had no idea how Ororo and Logan handled the pressure all the time. The sun was just setting making the sky turn various shades of red, orange, pick, and purple. As Rogue gazed upwards she thought that it reminded her of a three year old playing with paints.

"Hey Rogue . . . like what are you doing?" Kitty asked as she phased through the front door and came to stand next to her friend.

"Nothin' like looking outside . . . relaxin'" she said with a small shrug.

"So . . ." Kitty said and Rogue could not help but wince. She knew what that word meant followed by a long pause. It meant that Kitty Pryde was about to ask something that Rogue was _not_ going to like. Worst part was that she had an inkling as to what the shorter brunette girl was going to ask and it had something to do with a certain southern boy.

"Kitty, sug, whatevea that question yer about ta ask is, don't." Rogue said sternly.

"Come on, Rogue . . . I'm like your _best_ friend. Why do you always push us away . . . me away? Listen, whatever your answer is, I promise it will stay between you and me!"

Sighing, Rogue said, "Kit, it ain't nothin' against ye . . . ah know ya wouldn't tell anyone. These walls have ears, sugah. Ah ain't stupid enough ta think that we're the only ones hearin' this conversation." This seemed to make the younger girl think for a long time.

"Okay . . . when we get a chance to have a conversation that no one else can eavesdrop on . . . will you answer like _all_ of my questions . . . even if you don't like them?" Kitty pressed locking Rogue with a stern look.

"Yeah, sure, sug . . . but good luck findin' a place like _that_." Rogue pointed out.

"Don't like underestimate me . . . I can be quiet resourceful when I want to know something." Kitty said and turned back to the mansion. "Enjoy looking at the sky . . . you deserve a break." She said before disappearing inside.

Rogue sighed and looked down at her hands . . . and that was when she noticed it . . . her favorite gloves had a sizable hole on the side of one of her index finger. No one who was currently in the house knew how to sew . . . that was what Jean was usually good for. Rogue contemplated using one of her other pairs . . . but they were all ball gown gloves and one pair of uncomfortable wool gloves for the winter. Neither option sounded appealing. Therefore, Rogue growled and headed towards the garage.

She quickly decided that she would just run down to the store and get a temporary pair of new gloves. Rogue would be back before anyone knew she was even gone. As she approached the garage, Rogue pulled out her set of keys and unlocked the door. She was glad that the Professor had given her an extra key to the van.

"Where do ye t'ink yer goin' this late by yerself, chere?" Remy asked while his form darkened the door way.

"To the store, swamp rat," she said genuinely confused. Rogue chose to ignore him and went to open the van door. She had only pulled it open a few inches when his hand reached from behind her and slammed it shut. Rogue turned on him and glared with anger. How did he come off stopping her?

"Let meh go ya crazy Cajun." She said.

"Rogue . . . did ye forget ye ain't supposed ta be goin' off on yer own? C'est dangeruous. (it is dangerous)" he said chiding her.

"Remy, they took a kid, and ah ain't no kid." She pointed out. Remy eyed her up and down slowly lingering a long time on her curvy hips.

"Oui, Remy know ye ain't un enfant (child)," he said. Then he reached down to her hand and snatched away the keys. Realizing what had happened, Rogue tried to get them back. However, Remy jingled them just out of her reach chuckling at her vein attempts. After a short struggle, Rogue gave in and folded her arms over her chest frowning at the Cajun. "So, where am I driving?" he asked.

Rogue growled as she walked around the van to the passenger's side. Gambit loved to take control over her . . . whether it was pinning her against a wall or taking her keys. Hell . . . even before that he had taken control by kidnapping her. As she got to the door, he was already inside and leaned over to open her it for her. Rogue climbed in muttering a 'thank you' under her breath. The question was . . . did she _lik_e him being in control? She was the one person in the mansion who had to always be on top of things . . . keeping a careful eye on her skin . . . protecting everyone else. Most of the time she only felt annoyed when others tried to offer her a hand . . . or when they worried over her. Remy was different somehow. She might pretend to hate his attention, but secretly . . . Rogue loved it.

"Rogue . . ." he questioned since he still had no idea where they were going.

"Ah need ta go somewhere ah can get a pair of gloves . . . mine have a hole in them," she declared as she buckled herself in. Remy turned on the ignition and they pulled smoothly out of the Institute garage.

"Chere . . . are ye okay . . .ye seem ta be deep in thought, non?" he asked as the gate of the Institute swung open.

"Ah am . . . just thinkin' . . . nothin' wrong with that." She said softly and turned to look out the window.

"What hand is de hole in, chere?" Remy asked after a long moment of silence.

"Mah right," she replied never looking away from the passing scenery. Rogue jumped when she felt a hand on hers. She glanced down and saw that Remy's bare hand was squeezing hers lightly. Rogue gaped, suddenly realizing that she had never seen his hands bare since . . . well, ever.

"Ye ain't wearin' yer gloves," Rouge said out loud. She could faintly hear the surprise in her voice.

"Oui, when Remy saw ye headin' for de garage he quickly came after ye. Remy forgot ta grab his gloves," he said.

"Why do ya always wear yer gloves?" she asked. Rogue knew why she wore them . . . but Remy had no reason to. His skin was perfectly normal . . . Rogue could attest to that since it was right before her eyes. His hands were bigger than she had imagined . . . perhaps because he was so quick with them that Rogue figured they had to be small.

"Remy don't always wear dem," he said and Rogue could see him frown slightly and his brows knitted together.

"Every time ah see ye yer wearin' them." Rogue pointed out.

"Remy don' wear dem in de shower or ta bed . . . wanna see fer yerself, chere?" he said taking no time to turn their conversation into something lewd. However, Rogue had undoubtedly caught him . . . he always wore them for _her_. Rogue tucked that away as she responded to his suggestive comment by yanking her hand away from him.

"Ah think ah'll pass," she said and turned once more to the window. Remy wasted no time placing his ungloved hand on her thigh.

* * *

The x-men were exhausted as they came out of yet another empty warehouse. So far the six that they had searched were all were empty and Logan swore that no human other than a hobo or two had been in them for a long time. Charles waited for his team outside the building. He could sense their exhaustion . . . both in spirit and body.

"Chuck . . . how many are left?" Logan asked as he came up to his old friend. Jean and Hank were not far behind.

"There are twenty more to check . . . perhaps we should call it a day . . . return in the morning after everyone is refreshed," the Professor suggested.

"Do you sense anything that could help narrow things down?" Jean asked.

"No, I am afraid not," Charles told his team.

"I think a quick rest would do us some good." Hank chimed in after a long pause. Everyone hated to stop knowing that a few hours could make the difference in them bring back Dorian to his mother dead or alive.

"I do not think his captures mean to kill young Dorian," Charles assured sensing his teams train of thought.

"How do you know that, Chuck? Just because they haven't yet doesn't mean they won't." Wolverine demanded.

"You are right Logan . . . I have not read their minds . . . I don't even know who they are . . . I am just going by statistics." The Professor admitted.

"Why don't we just check out one more place before calling it a night . . . the sun will be setting in a couple of hours . . . we can quit then." Jean suggested.

* * *

Okay . . . this is the last update for a while . . . seriously . . . okay maybe one more. lol. So, Scott is finally home. Our southern couple go to the store. Isn't sweet how concerned Remy is for Rogue. Are they finally moving in the right direction? Let not forget out x-men in washington. Will their searching be sucsessful or will they come up empty handing. And what about poor Dorian . . . where is he, and who has him? Okay, this is a transition chapter, so nothing too exciting. After the next update I'm going to take a brief break . . . rest my hands and such, or i could work on some neglected homework. Sigh . . . so please update.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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WolfFenrisulfr : thanks, but I need a break soon. I have a bit of homework due at the end of the week, so this will be the last update til the weekend most likely. And I totally get it . . . Remy in a position like that . . . a girl could die.

tfobmv18 : thank you

Wanda W : I like that Rogue appreciates it too. Not sure yet how Kitty is going to acomplish this, but I;m sure she'll find a way. That girl can be scary when she's determined.

* * *

Rogue and Remy looked at the gloves in the sports section of the large chain discount store down a lonely isle in the back of the store. Rogue grimaced over the pitiful section . . . not a lot to choose from. She really needed to learn how to sow . . . or start buying gloves she liked in bulk . . . they never seemed to last too long between daily use, missions, and danger-room sessions. Rogue contemplated just suffering with the few pathetic gloves she had at home and wait for Jean to repair her favorites.

However, the problem with that was that Jean could be gone for a while. Thinking about Jean reminded Rogue that Dorian was still missing . . . and that the search for him was now progressing rather slowly. She should not be complaining about gloves while that poor boy was not safe at home with his mother.

Yanking a pair of plain steel grey gloves off the display she headed for the check out while Remy followed by her side. Glancing sideways at his glasses kept making her chuckle. After a few minutes of enduring this, Remy finally snapped and yanked on the hood of her thick black sweater.

"What's so funny, Rogue?" he demanded to know. Rogue had no idea if he was truly upset or just playing the part since she could not see his eyes.

"Ah just ain't used ta not seein' yer eyes," she explained with a small shrug. "It's a shame ya have ta hide them in public," she said and began making progress back to the front of the store. It did not take long for Remy to bound to her side like a puppy.

"Ye like Remy's eyes?" he asked voice full of smugness. Rogue rolled her eyes at him.

"No, they're creepy," she said playfully. Remy pouted at her and clutched his chest dramatically.

"Ya wound me, chere!" he wailed loudly. Rogue was instantly hushing him. They did not need to draw attention to themselves. "Admit it, ye like dis Cajun," he said leaning in towards her slightly. Rogue laughed and gave him a gentle push.

"Yer incorrigible," she said as they approached a long line of checkout lines. Only one actually had a worker checking people out. Rogue and Remy quickly got in the line.

"What are ye doin' when we get back, chere?" Remy asked suddenly changing topic. Rogue glanced at him as she plopped the gloved onto the checkout conveyer.

"Probably catch up on my school work . . . ah have a paper due at the end of the week. Why?" she asked.

"Nothin', Remy just curious dats all," he said while looking towards the door. Rogue turned to the cashier as she scanned the item. The girl looked barely old enough to hold a job.

"Nineteen dollars and eighty cents," the unenthusiastic girl with teal hair announced to her. Rogue cringed at the price . . . perhaps she should have checked that first. With a groan she went to her back pocket and handed the girl a twenty. Rogue had to be careful with her money. She only had time for a job in the summer because of her college classes and helping out with the students. Not to mention she was an active x-men.

"Keep the change," she called to the cashier over her should as she exited the building. Remy quickly caught up to her and pulled her to a stop when they had just gotten out of the place.

"Désolé, chere, mais Remy forgot ta get somethin'. Do ya mind waiting here?" he asked. Rogue nodded, but Remy griped her arm even tighter. "Promise Remy ye will stay here. He doesn't want somthin' ta happen to ya," he said fiercely.

"Ah won't go anywhere . . . ya got the keys remember? Ah'll just go sit at that bench and wait for ya," she said and pointed to bench not too far away. The Cajun examined where she pointed for a long moment before nodding and abruptly going back inside.

* * *

Jean Grey sighed as she made her way through another warehouse. So far this place was yet another dud . . . and she was beginning to lose hope. She found herself in a stairwell at the back of the building that descend down into a basement. The basement was definitely left off the city plans she though as she approached a thick lead door. This looked promising . . .

Pushing on her wrist band Jean sent a message out to the others, "I think I got something . . . there's a lead door leading to a basement. I think the whole thing is constructed of lead . . . and Cerebro cannot penetrate through lead," she explained. Lead certainly explained the difficulty they were having finding Leech.

"_We got your location, Red, and we're on our way_," Logan said from wherever in the warehouse he was located.

"_I'm close by_," Beast's voice said through Jean's build-in walkie-talkie.

"_Be careful_," the professor cautioned from outside. These warehouses were not wheelchair friendly, which meant that Charles Xavier had to patiently wait outside. Jean reached out for the door latch as she heard Best coming up behind her.

"Quite remarkable . . . this is very promising," he said just as Logan bounded down the stairs.

"Let's get this over with . . . do you want to go first Red, or should I?" Wolverine asked.

Instead of answering, Jean lifted and pulled the latch aside opening the door. As she did so, it gave off a long drawn out metallic squeal. When the door opened florescent ceiling lights flickered on illuminating a medium sized room. It looked like a surgical room and Jean gasped and covered her mouth as the smell of old dried blood infiltrated her sense of smell. In the center of the room, an operating table waited like an alter. It was splattered with blood and the tiled floor just beneath it was stained a rusty red. Jean's stomach lurched and she barely turned to the ground before she threw up what was in her stomach.

Beast was at her side rubbing her back in a soothing manner. Then he placed something in front of her nose and the smell of blood was gone. Jean stood feeling a little wobbly as Logan sniffed at the horrific table.

"The blood is a few days old . . . smells like a mutant's, but it's not Leech . . . it's someone I don't recognize." He explained. Jean dared one more look at it before taking off towards the door at the opposite side of the room. Yanking it open, she entered a hallway with a dozen of other doors. Beast came behind her and peered over her shoulder.

"I do not smell anything living beyond here . . . and there is no more blood," Beast explained. Jean was grateful to hear that she would not have to endure that retched smell again.

"Let's each take one," she suggested and went down the hallway a little. Hank and Logan each took different doors and entered them just as Jean approached one. She used her powers to turn the handle and push the door open. Venturing inside her powers flipped on the light switch. Jean was prepared to see something terrible, but not for what she saw.

It was an office of sorts . . . with the typical desk and a few papers scattered on top. An empty bookshelf must have been full to the brim recently since there was no dust. What shocked Jean was the wall of pictures behind the desk. It was a mural dedicated to one person . . . someone Jean knew . . . they were all of Rogue.

"Beast, Wolverine!" she screamed as she slowly approached. There were hundreds of them . . . if not thousands. All of them were within the last year and taken from a distance. Jean shuttered in fear as her companions busted in the room reading to defend her against an attacked. What they saw when they entered frozen them both in similar terror.

"Shit, Stripes. We got to warn her." Logan shouted as he ran out back towards where the Professor could pick up a signal.

* * *

Rogue chucked at Remy's departure and walked over to the steel bench. Logan would have been impressed at how overly concerned the Cajun had been. What could happen to her in front of a store? It was well light. Besides, Rogue could handle herself. It wasn't like she was without defenses. Looking around, Rogue noted how empty the store parking lot was . . . which she noted was odd. She figured there would be plenty of people making quick stops for last minute forgotten items. Rogue turned her head and her eyes scanned the darkness on the side of the building. She was surprised it had gotten dark so fast.

Suddenly a bright light flashed towards her from the darkness followed by a loud mechanical click. Rogue tried to blink away the stars in her eyes and she listened while getting to her feet in a fighting stance. She was just about to see right when another flash of a camera went off in her eyes much closer than before. Rogue swung a sightless punch and tried to calm herself. Panicking never did any good.

"Remy!" she screamed while moving backwards towards the building. She hoping someone would hear her since her sight was totally blinded. Another light went off again and Rogue fell to the ground in her hast to get away. Someone was approaching closer, Rogue noted as she listened. Closing her eyes to prevent being blinded by the powerful flash again, Rogue pushed herself up with her hands while kicking backwards. A second later her foot met solidly with human flesh. The attacker hissed in pain and shuffled backwards.

* * *

Okay. I know I said it before, but this is the last update until the weekend at least. Sorry, I have have some school work to do that's due Firday . . . so this will have to hold you over til then. Funny how this one ends in a cliff hanger . . . I know I'm evil . . . sorry. It just sort of worked out this way. The next chapter is mostly written . . . but not ready for posting . . . and I'll be to busy between now and Firday . . . again sorry. Well at least this creates some suspense. Lots of questions too. Like who is Rogue's attacker? Will Rogue be able to get out of this one or will she be next in a line of kidnappings? And what's with the pictures? So, please review! I appreciate it


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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ChamberlinofMusic : who would have guessed . . . thanks. Yeah their flirtation is growing.

Wanda W : yeah . . . it is stalkerish. Thanks

Valnar : ha ha. Yeah . . . its not a long time, but it felt like it to me . . . despite the mountain of hw that i had, which should have kept me busy. You'll eventually figure out who the attacker is.

The Duplicitous One (14) : the question about the pictures will in answered later. Thank you.

The Duplicitous One (13) : yeah Remy sure can be sweet when he wants

tfobmv18 : hopefully he does. thank you jadeDino : thanks. Yeah Mystique would be obvious . . . but she might make and appreance

* * *

Rogue scrambled to get to her feet. She had barely enough time to roll out of the way as she heard a leg whipping the air seeking her stomach. Sometimes having Logan crammed in the back of her head with his superhuman reflexes paid off. Rogue got into a crouched position waiting for another attack with her eyes firmly closed. Before her assailant could do anything, Rogue felt the wind from one Remy's projected weapons and she heard the boom simultaneously. It knocked her backwards on the ground with a jarring force.

Seconds passed before she dared to open her eyes. Rogue could just barely make out Remy's form as he bent down and pulled her into his arms protectively. His eyes had been intense when she looked into them . . . fierce and feral. His body was shaking just as much as hers if not more so. Remy buried her face into his chest as his finger tangled themselves into her hair. Rogue could hear him muttering to her hair in French . . . it was too fast and soft for her to translate.

"Ah . . . ah'm fahne," she told him and tried to get him to let her go.

"Non," he said gruffly before squashing her to him again. Rogue wheezed her breath out since he was squeezing the air out of her.

"Remy, ah am _fahne_. It was just--" She started but he cut her off.

"Non," he said on the verge of yelling. "J'ai vu . . . j'ai vu, (I saw)" he mumbled. Rogue forcefully pushed him away, but Remy did not let her get far. He set her on his lap and kept his arms protectively around her. A few people were staring at them curiously having heard the blast. The concrete was scorched where the card had landed.

"Ye saw what?" she demanded.

"It was a femme . . . avec un sac (bag) . . . and a . . . cattle prod. She did not mean ta just take yer picture . . . dat was just ta distract ye . . . she took off quand j'ai jeté de card (when I threw the card)" he explained and Rogue saw him search the darkness as if he was not quite sure the woman was really gone.

"What's going on here?" a short bald man from the store demanded coming out and examining the large crown. Rogue sprang to her feet and pulled a stunned Remy with her. The last thing they need was to get the cops called on them. "Is all this ruckus about you? Get off the store's property this minute!" he yelled. Rogue tugged insistently on Remy's coat steering him in the direction of the van.

"Were leaving!" Rogue screamed as tears formed in her eyes. She was still shaking, but it was mostly her hands. She fished in Remy's pockets for the keys. They rattled noisily as she pulled them out . . . tattling on her nerves. Remy's eyes narrowed in on her sharply as she came to the back of the van.

"Chere," he crooned and carefully pulled her into his arms again. Rogue allowed herself to be held as she chocked on a sob. She gripped his back forcing herself to press against him more fully. For some reason she was afraid. She had tried to pass it off as nothing to calm him down, but instinct told Rogue she had been in deep danger a few minutes ago. Remy gently stroked her hair as he whispered that she was okay . . . that he was not going to let anything happen to her. Only when her breathing calmed did Remy let her go.

"We need ta call de mansion . . . tell someone about dis immédiatement," he said as he pulled a phone out of one of his pockets. He dialed the number while silently rubbing Rogue's arm. "Bobby, get Scottie . . . it is très important." Remy told the phone.

Rogue laid curled up on her bed in a huge oversized long-sleeved blue and green plaid night gown and black sweats. A part of her was still dealing with the events from earlier. Practically the whole mansion had pulled up to the store after Remy's call. They had scoured the place while Scott, Remy, and Kurt went with Rogue back to the mansion. It seemed that seconds before Remy called, the Professor had also called the mansion frantic about some pictures of her plastered on a wall in the basement of the warehouse that Dorian had been held in previously.

More bad news came in with that since apparently there was evidence to support that many mutants had been held in the facility. So Charles was pulling everyone from Washington and returning. Hank had some evidence he wanted to examine in his lab.

Once they got to the mansion things got ugly. Scott interrogated her on the events of the attack at the store. He got angry at her lack of details. She had been fighting with her eyes closed after all to avoid being blinded by the camera flash. He had wanted to know why pictures of her were found in a basement connected with mutant kidnappings. Rogue knew Scott did not think she had any involvement . . . he was just trying to get her to think. He wanted her to hopefully recall some distant memory of being followed . . . or something that now made sense that had not at the time. He was pushing her for answers with a proven technique . . . yelling.

Rogue did not really mind. She understood its purpose and wanted to help in every way even though at the time she just wanted to disappear in a hot bubble bath. However, Kurt and Remy did not seem to agree with Scott's methods. While Rogue restrained Remy, Kurt had surprisingly taken a swing at Scott. Apparently, he did not care how long he and Cyclops were friends when it came to his sister.

Rogue was even surprised how well Scott took the attack. He diffused it quickly and dismissed it as Kurt needing to vent his fear for his sister. He did not take Remy's harsh words quite as well. The Cajun had said as serious as Rogue had ever hear him, 'Yell at ma chere like dat again and I will cut yer tongue out.' To that Scott had antagonized Remy to 'make his day'. It took Rogue threatening to absorb all of them before they calmed down.

Rogue had retreated to her room not long after she was certain the boys were not going o kill each other. She promised bodily harm if anyone disturbed her before morning. Now, Rogue found herself wide awake and too alert to sleep. A part of her was still in 'defend mode' and despite how exhausted she was sleep was going to be an impossibility.

A cold breeze gentle caressed her back and Rogue spun around facing her balcony prepared with her fists raised. She had half risen from the bed when she recognized her intruder. Remy LeBeau was crouched on her balcony smiling at her as if sneaking onto her balcony was a common every day occurrence.

"What the hell are ya doin' on mah balcony?" she demanded coldly. The Cajun apparently took the fact that he was not dead yet as an invitation to enter her room. He did not come too close to her and walked over to her desk and pulled her chair out, spun it around, and sat down. He looked like a twelve year old boy sitting that way, Rogue thought.

"Remy . . . Remy wanted ta make sure ya were okay chere." He explained and gave her a faint one shoulder shrug.

"Ah told ya ah was fahne. Not a scratch on meh." She said. Remy looked up at her through the curtain on his growing hair. After watching her for a long moment, he sighed and ran his fingers through it. Rogue recognized it as a gesture he commonly made when nervous or exasperated . . . which one it was she was unsure.

Rogue could not help but appreciate him and his body. Remy was dressed as if ready for bed in a pair of old worn dark grey sweats and a long-sleeved light grey tee-shirt that clung perfectly to his chest. He was the kind of man who made women melt and their pulses quicken. He was a man who needed touch . . . something _she_ could never offer anyone. Rogue knew he could be out . . . talking to any woman he wanted. However, he was in her room . . . checking up on _her_.

"Why are ya still awake Rogue?" he asked. Rogue stared at him and pulled her ever growing hair out of the messy bun she had put it in earlier. It tumbled down in a mass of messy curl-like tendrils.

"Ah can't seem ta relax. It ain't a big deal . . . happens a lot ta meh actually," she told him choosing to divulge a part of herself to him. Remy must have appreciated her offer because she saw the corner of his mouth tug into a small smile.

"Ya want Remy ta sing ta ya . . . lull ya ta sleep?" he asked with a quick wink.

Rogue laughed. "Can ya even sing, Rems?" she demanded and folded her arms on top of each other while resting them on her knees.

"Good point, chere. Remy singing might not help. What will help ya relax . . . a back message? Remy's good at dat." he offered with a quirked eyebrow.

"There is no way ah am lettin' ya give meh a back message. Ah know it will just end in ya gropin' meh. No, ah . . . ah guess a part of meh is still waitin' ta be attacked . . . so ah can't relax or fall asleep." She said.

"Would it help if Remy stay here by yer side till ya fall asleep?" he asked. Rogue considered him for a long moment. It probably could not hurt to try. Perhaps her mind would let go if it knew someone was watching.

"All right . . . stay here _just_ until ah fall asleep," she told him.

"Remy will stay till yah fall asleep chere," he said. Rogue gave him a stern look before flicking her light off and lying down in her bed. After burrowing down into her blanket she realized she was not at all bothered by his presence . . . and that despite herself her eyes were feeling heavy.

* * *

My homework is finally over! Yeah! Anyways. So Rogue is attacked by a woman. Who is she? What are the x-men going to do? It seems that someone is trying to kidnap mutants . . . or was Rogue's attack unrelated? And that was sweet of Remy. He's going to watch over her. Please review!


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own x-men

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Shadow Hand Zealot : thanks. I agree that it should slowly evolve. Rogue is not the type of woman for instant declarations of love. I'm happy to hear that Gabit is in character.

jadeDino : thank you. I'm not giving anything away. If I do my job right you won't know til the very end. I like throwing curve balls.

Wanda W : thanks yeah. I love that Kurt steps in. Very brotherly of him. Yeah, Remy might feel more welcomed in her room now. And I will answer your questions about Rogue's attacker with time and what is up with the pictures.

Ondjage : yeah a little at a time she is. T

he Duplicitous One : Kurt just swung at him, but did not actually land a punch. thanks for reviewing

Valnar : ha ha. Yeah, but Remy being the attacker would have been intersting. thanks

kataragirl11 : thanks

IrisWriter thank you.

The Bittersweet End : aw thanks

nonentity eternal : thanks. I'm happy that you were plesantly surprised. I'm happy you like my story so far.

tfobmv18 : yes, it is getting complicated . . . hopefully not too complicated. Thanks

* * *

The sunset was beyond beautiful as it painted the sky a vibrant red that slowly transitioned into the blue. Rogue felt completely relaxed as her toes scrunched in the wet sand. The wind was a little chilly, but it felt wonderful against her bare skin. Looking down she was amazed to see her skin uncovered in public. The black string bikini covered the bare minimum while allowing as much as possible to be exposed.

_Rogue was not even started as a strong arm wrapped around her stomach and a bare male chest pressed against her back. She actually laughed and laid her head back. His lips were on her neck in an instant. _

"_Do ya ever get enough?" she asked her lover. The Cajun only grinned and nipped gently on the spot just below her ear that drove her crazy. Rogue moaned as her legs quivered. The arm that was not holding her against him brushed against her hip dipping slightly into her skin. _

"_Jamais, Remy always wants more of ye chere . . . ma chere." He said and then moved his lips upwards to capture hers. Rogue turned in his grip until they were facing. Their tongues danced together and a shiver ran down the length of her spine. Remy's lips left hers and Rogue pouted. However, they touched her skin again once more on her neck. _

"_Remy" she moaned into his hair. _

* * *

Rogue opened her eyes slowly and realization hit that she had yet another dream about Remy. Glancing at the clock Rogue bolted up from her bed while the cold attacked her. It was past noon . . . she _never_ slept that long or soundly. Running her fingers through her hair Rogue tried to banish the sleepiness.

"Morning," a voice next to her said. Rogue shot out of bed like a rocket and stared opened mouthed at the Cajun reclined on top of her comforter. "Do ya always dream about dis Cajun?" he demanded while stretching his arms.

"Ya filthy stinkin', Swamp rat!" Rogue screamed. Remy was instantly to his feet on the other side of the bed. "You slept in my _bed_!" she hollered.

"Chere . . . Rogue—" he tried to explain but she cut him off.

"Ah trusted ya ta leave after ah fell asleep! Ya said ya would." She yelled.

"Non, Remy said he would stay until ya fell asleep . . . he said nothin' about afterwards," he said with his hands defensively in the air. "Remy tried ta leave," he muttered edging towards her balcony.

"Ya _tried_!" she snarled. Just then her door burst open and Logan stood in the door way looking like a hound from hell.

"Stripes," he stated as a question. He had jumped to conclusions once before. Remy backed up further towards the only exit.

"He slept in mah bed!" she said and pointed an accusing finger at the Cajun.

Remy wasted no time in yanking open her balcony door and leaping off. Logan's claws came out with a distinctive metalic sound and he charged after the thief. Rogue sat down on her bed struggling with her pounding heart. Her cheeks were bright red. Rogue knew she had a bad habit of talking in her sleep . . . he _knew_.

Rogue was certain that the thief was in no real danger from Logan . . . the most he would get was a little ruffed up. Wolverine would not kill the Cajun . . . and the Swamp rat deserved a little fear. What she needed was a long shower . . . that would hopefully erase what had happened.

Rogue emerged from her shower wrapped in a large soft navy blue towel. The scalding shower had worked wonders on her mood. She had a plan in place and confidence in that plan. The Professor had summoned her to his office in an half an hour to discuss the events of the previous day. Rogue did not bother with civilian clothes and changed straight into her typical uniform.

She went into her bathroom intent on straightening her curly hair before putting on her makeup and heading to the Professor's office. She looked in her cabinet where the flatiron usually was only to find it missing.

"What in the . . ." Rogue muttered to herself. She looked all around the bathroom and even her room. Her flatiron was nowhere to be seen. "That thief!" she screamed while looking at herself in the mirror. Her hair was already drying into its natural state . . . ringlets. The only woman in the mansion at the moment was Ororo, and Rogue was certain that she did not have a flatiron. "Uh! Why meh?" Rogue groaned. Turning sharply to the mirror she thought about what to do with her hair. Rogue grumbled while pulling it back into a ponytail . . . then at least it would be out of her _way_.

"Uh . . . it's so _girly_." She complained to her reflection. At least she had her makeup . . . "Cajun!" Rogue screamed when she noticed it too was missing. The only item of makeup he left her was her lipstick. She folded her arms over her chest contemplating not leavening her room.

Rogue sighed as left her bathroom and scooped up her gloves before exiting her room. She headed towards the Professor's office not at all worried about running into anyone. All the students were still in school. She did run into Ororo at the bottom of the stairs.

"You caused quite the commotion this afternoon," the older woman said as Rogue joined her side.

"It wasn't meh . . . blame Gambit." She said trying to keep the sharpness out of her voice at least while talking to the weather witch.

"Did you mean to kill him child? If I had not stopped Logan I think Mr. LeBeau would be in critical condition." Storm said sternly. Her words made Rogue stop dead in her tracks.

"What? Ah didn't think he would really hurt Remy . . . is he okay?" she demanded.

"Gumbo is fine . . . I slipped that's all." Logan said stepping out from seemingly nowhere. Rogue turned on him.

"Yah slipped? What does that _mean_?" she demanded. Logan looked away and turned to Storm looking for backup.

"Rogue . . . child . . . you underestimate the intensity of a father's love . . . Logan looks to you like you were his daughter," Ororo said.

"Is he _alright_?" Rogue repeated. Her voice had grown low and threatening.

"I just cut his leg a little . . . he is going to live. The never he had to—" Logan said, but his anger took over making him unable to finish his sentence. Rogue relaxed knowing that Remy was not in any life threatening danger. Just because she was angrier than a crossed gator at him did not mean she wanted him with three holes in his stomach.

"Beast is patching him up right now. He's been asking for you . . . he said he needs to explain . . . that you don't understand." Ororo said.

"He can wait . . . we have a meetin'," she said firmly to end all discussion. Rogue had no intentions of going to see the Cajun. She would not know how to even look at him knowing he had heard her in her sleep. She could not take his gloating or smugness.

"By the way, I love your hair like that," Storm said as she took off once more for the Professor's office. Rogue rolled her eyes before turning to Logan. He seemed more relaxed now that he was out of the line of fire.

"So, did he look scared?" she asked her father figure. Logan snorted as they followed Storm.

"No . . . he's too calm. Anyone else would have pissed themselves . . . I got to hand it to Gumbo . . . he's determined, but so am I," Logan said threatening. Rogue laughed and patted his arm quickly as they entered the Professor's office.

The mood of the room wiped away any of Rogue's laughter and she looked around at the serious faces. Scott was leaning against the file cabinet in the far back with a manila folder held firmly in his hand while Jean stood relatively calmly at his side. Rogue took a seat next to the one that Storm occupied and Logan stood in the back. Charles looked at each one of his mutants in the eye. His gaze lingered on Rogue for a long moment.

"This situation has escalated . . . it is beyond a simple kidnapping of a single child. We have evidence that as many as ten have been taken . . . and one of our own, Rogue, has been attacked." Charles said slowly. He turned towards Scott and nodded his head. Cyclops came forward and stretched the folder in his hand to Rogue. She took it cautiously guessing its contents.

The back door opened gaining the attention of the whole room. Beast entered and quietly closed the door behind him. "Sorry I am late . . . I had a medical emergency," he explained while looking pointedly at Logan who grunted in reply. Rogue turned away from Mr. McCoy and quickly flipped the folder open not wanting to debate the issue in her mind. She gasped out loud.

There were so many pictures . . . ones of her at the school, shopping, half-undressed, and even one single image from her graduation. Cold dread settled in her stomach and she closed the folder and tossed it on top of the Professor's desk.

"Do we know . . . who took these pictures?" Ororo asked with fear in her voice.

"Sadly, no. Here is what we know: this individual . . . or individuals . . . took Dorian Leech from his home. Whoever this is . . . they have performed some surgeries on mutants. We also know that Rouge is clearly a target. I have purchased a new defense system from Europe and tomorrow we are installing advanced motion sensors in the outlining property of the Institute. From today onwards throughout the night an x-man, excluding Rogue, will patrol the grounds. Students will continue to come home straight from school and will be driven by us. Now, Rogue . . . you are an adult and therefore free to make your own decisions. I would prefer it if you stayed at the mansion until this is resolved." Chalres Xavier said.

Rogue's eyes were still on the folder. "Professa . . . could ya burn those or somethin' cuz they creep meh out." She asked. Charles smiled comfortingly and reached for the offensive folder.

"Of course, Rogue. You will never see it again." He promised and a second later it disappeared into a drawer. "Mr. McCoy, could you explain what you found?" he asked turning to him.

* * *

I guess some of you saw Remy not leaving coming . . . I hope I;m not geting predictable, but yet again him staying is a very Remy thing for him to do. Poor cajun . . . just when he was getting somewhere he had to go and piss Rogue off. I love that Logan goes after him . . . and "accidently" cuts him. I also love that Remy steals her flatiron . . . he likes her hair curly. Now Remy know Rogue has the hots for him . . . how is this going to affect their relationship? Not to mention where is the whole mutant kidnapper issue going? What has Hank discovered? Will it lead them to Dorian or no where? Please review!


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

* * *

IrisWriter : thanks. I'm happy to hear it.

The Bittersweet End : Yeah. Logan chasing after the cajuin is priceless. And the idea of Remy borrowing her makeup for his own use is funny, but that's not why. Now I have the image in my head. I laughed uncontrolably at the mental picture of Remy putting on foundation and using a flatiron on his hair.

jadeDino : yeah. Goota love irony. Poor Rogue . . . she just has the worst luch. apparently I mumble, but nothing discernable. I agree that Logan is a father figure . . . at least with Rogue. They seem to have a bond that he has with no other studient.

kataragirl11 : thanks. Yeah the pcitures are creepy. Rogue will probably still put up a fight even though the Cajun knows.

tfobmv18 : that does sound like Rogue. She likes him, which is why she left him breathing.

Wanda W : yeah. Storm has no idea that curly is what Rogue is trying to avoid. Yeah . . . he did not say he was going to burn him. I actually have no idea what he intends to do with them . . . probably put them in a large file somewhere. And yes poor Dorian . . .

nonentity eternal : thank you. And Remy slept ontop of the covers.

Ondjage : yes, Remy is sneaky. Yes having some creep taking pictures of you is unsettling.

The Duplicitous One : hum . . . sinisrer you say. I am not giving anything away. You'll have to wait and find out when the characters do. Thanks.

Valnar : yeah. I love the image that creates. Too bad Rogue did not actually see it. Good thing Remy can run.

Shadow Hand Zealot : yes remy is persistant. He needs to be if he wants to win Rogue over. Yeah, I edit, but something always gets past me. Thanks

ChamberlinofMusic : thank you. I agree they are heating up a little. I also love the Logan and Remy chase scene.

* * *

Everyone in the Professor's office turned expectantly towards Mr. McCoy eager to hear some good news. Rogue particularly hoped he had found something useful from the leftovers of that warehouse.

"When we found the warehouse we collected twelve papers in total. Several of the papers are useless . . . nothing that could track down our culprits. One paper is a medical document explaining the surgical procedure performed on one mutant. Sadly, due to complications this person died from blood loss. This happened shortly before our arrival . . . three days before we entered that warehouse to be exact. Somehow they got tipped off that we were coming and cleared out. The blood we found, I think is the victims. According to the medical report the death was accidental. There is no way in my opinion that this could have been carried out by one individual. So, now we know that more than one person is at play here." Beast explained.

"Someone died?" Scott demanded. Apparently no one had heard Mr. McCoy's information yet.

"Yes . . . Logan said that the blood we found did not belong to Dorian, which means someone we do not know, died. The report refers to the mutant by the number two. There is no mention of the sex. It explains that during the procedure that the mutant bled out. They did not know that the deceased was severely anemic." Beast said softly. Heavy silence settled in the room after that. Rogue's stomach twisted as she tried to breathe deeply and calmly.

"Hank . . . did we get anything to help us track down and stop these pigs?" Logan demanded voicing everyone's thoughts.

"Let me continue then. We also have three papers that are written in code. I am still working on unlocking the specific code so that we may be able to understand what was written. If we can, I have full faith that these papers will prove to be valuable . . . why else write them in code?" Hank reasoned.

"Is there anything to suggest that these . . . terrorist are in any way connected to the government?" Jean asked.

"No, there is nothing. This of course does not mean that they are not connected in any way. I am going to leave now since I have a patient to check up on and papers to decipher," Mr. McCoy announced and quickly retreated from the room. His departure seemed to break up the meeting because a second later the other x-men started to leave. Rogue was about to exit when Logan grabbed her firmly by her upper arm halting her motions.

"Okay Stripes, you, me, and the danger room for a self-defense refresher course with escaping from kidnapper simulations." Logan said.

"Logan, ah know self-defense," she stated simply. Wolverine shook his head at her.

"Nope, we're doing this kid. I won't sleep at night unless I feel like you have had a good refresher," her father figure explained.

"Ah didn't know ya slept," Rogue joked. It was only when Logan did not rise to her bait that Rogue knew it was bad. It took a lot to worry the Canadian to this extent. Right now, he was looking at her as if he were weighing the option of locking her away for her own safely. Rogue knew he would do it too if he felt desperate enough and ignore anything the Professor had said about her being an adult. "Okay, fahne ah'll do it." Rogue said glumly.

* * *

Rogue crept along the residence hall of the mansion. She had successfully avoided the Cajun for two days. Hiding from a trained thief was an extremely difficult task . . . especially when that thief was trying desperately to find you. The hardest part was that Rogue had to steer clear of the typical places she went. The only times she had seen him was at dinner and the one training session with Scott.

During dinner Rogue had escaped the first time by taping Kitty and phasing through the floor as soon as she had finished eating. The second time she had asked Kurt to teleport her back in front of her room because she had left her flatiron on . . . which had been a lie. She was also angry that she had to borrow Kitty's spare flatiron since she refused to talk to the Cajun to demand hers back.

The whole house knew she and Remy were playing a game of cat and mouse. Some people it seemed were on his side and often gave away her location in order to end the insanity. Of course, there were some in the mansion who glared at him when he asked if they knew where she was. It was only years of training from Logan that had allowed her to evade him for as long as she had. Rogue also knew that it had to end eventually; however, she dreaded seeing him again.

Rogue had stopped being angry with the thief not long after she found him in her bed. It was the fact that he probably knew she had inappropriate dreams about him that made Rogue dodge and hide. Embarrassment was a strong motivator. Her room was just in sight and then she would grab the text book she needed. Rogue had not been in her room much since the incident. In fact at night she slept somewhere else the library couch as beginning to hurt her back.

Leaning against the door she listened briefly before deciding it was safe. She opened the door faster than Pietro and pushed the door closed behind her. Rogue sighed in relief and felt her body relax. She was safe . . . for now.

"Chere . . . Remy was beginin' ta t'ink ya were avoidin' him," the Cajun said softly behind her. Rogue turned her head and stared at the intruder. Remy was sitting at the opposite end of the room on her desk chair. Rogue contemplated running out of her room, but that would actually confirm his suspicions. Thus far he could only assume she was avoiding him.

"What are ya doin' in _mah_ room?" she demanded and planted her hands firmly on her hips. She had to at least pretend confidence and indifference. Remy rose from her chair and closed some of the distance between them. There was still plenty of space as he stooped just in front of her bed.

"Rogue, chere . . . Remy needed ta expain," he said. The beauty of his eyes stunned Rogue all over again as if she had not seen them so many times before. She had grown accustomed to seeing them and had been desensitized.

"Explain what?" she asked.

"Ya were staying away from Remy on purpose weren't ya? Was it because ya dreamed about Remy, or because he stayed in yer room?" he asked and took one small step towards her.

"Ain't ya conceded? So what if ah dreamed about ya? Ah dream about a lot of people." She said quickly hoping he had no idea what her dream had been about. It was completely possible she had simply mumbled his name instead of moaning it. Remy's face scrunched up in distaste.

"Ya dream about a lot of people like _that_, chere?" he asked barely above a whisper. Rogue's heart instantly leapt in her throat.

"Ah don't know what ya are talkin' about. Ah ain't gotta talk to ya about nothin' . . . ah gotta go." She said quickly while the blood pooled in her cheeks. Rogue did not even get the chance to touch the door knob before Remy yanked her arms behind her back. Then he pulled her against his chest and gently wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Rogue, please don't leave. Remy wants to explain . . . I tired ta leave once ya fell asleep . . . mais ya would not let moi," he said into her ear.

"What do ya mean?" Rogue asked frowning.

"Quand Remy tried ta leave ya cried out ta moi . . . Remy could not leave wit ya pleading dat he stay. Another thing chere, Remy is happy ya dream about him. He was beginin' ta t'ink ya didn't like him," he said and Rogue tried not to shiver with his hot breath on her neck.

"Ah don't like ya," she said with conviction. The hand on her stomach softly caressed her from her stomach to her side and Rogue gasped audibly.

"Remy knows when ya lying, Rogue. Yer body gives ya away," he said huskily. "Remy likes ya too, chere. Why else would he be tryin' so hard ta get ya to forgive him?"

"Ah don't believe ya," Rogue growled and tried to wrench herself from his grip. Instead, Remy spun her to face him.

"Den see for yerself, Rogue. Absorb Remy," he said with confidence. The conversation echoed one they had previously. Then Rogue had not called his bluff, but now she knew him to be a gambler. She pulled her glove off and let it fall to the ground.

Remy grabbed her wrist before Rogue could touch him. "Ah new ya were fakin!" she yelled.

"Non, ya can absorb Remy, mais not wit yer hand. If ya want da truth ya gotta do it avec a kiss," he declared with a smug grin. Rogue bit her lower lip regarding him for a long moment. If she even kissed him it proved that she did have feelings for him . . . not that the Cajun did not already suspect as much. Rogue finally decided knowing the truth was better than living in uncertainty. She stretched up on her toes and leaned towards his face. Remy's lips were still smiling as she gave him a gentle kiss.

His skin lingered on hers longer than she expected, and then Remy fell into a heap at her feet. Rogue struggled as his thoughts, memories, and powers entered her mind. She instantly knew several things . . . the first being that Remy had definitely heard her moan his name in her sleep . . . she also knew that it pleased him immensely to know that she thought of him in that way. He had even been telling the truth about her begging him to stay in her sleep. Rogue knew from his own memories that he had been beside himself while she had avoided him. The last thought to course through his mind had been how wonderful her lips had tasted. Rogue looked down at the unconscious man at her feet with a small smile.

"Rogue just can't let ya sleep on de floor now, non?" she said to him.

* * *

Well . . . Hank certainly did not learn a lot . . . or anything too happy. Yes, a poor mutant died. Its not Dorian as Hank said . . . but its still sad. It has a purpose so stay with me. I do love Logan forcing Rogue to have extra danger-room sessions. And I love that Rogue was avoiding Remy. Smart guy hiding in her room. She had to eventually go there. And now that cat's out of the bag . . . or is it? Notice Rogue never actually told him she liked him? What does this new revelation mean for the couple? Will Hank be able to unlock the code for those papers? What do they say? Next time: Rogue gets an unexpected visiter.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

* * *

Wanda W : yeah, remy was kind of worried that Rogue had dreams like that often . . . and ones where he isn't the star. Thanks about Logan. He is one of my favorites. He's like on overgrown plushie with claws . . . at least with Rogue he is. I also like being realistic in my writting. I've done embarasing things (sort of like Rogue only slightly tipsy) and then avoided the person like the plague. It is easier if you don't avoid, but it is the first instinct when dealing with such embarashing issues.

nonentity eternal : yeah, I kinda do like putting them in horrible situtations and watching how it works out. It helps that I only post when I already have the next chapter written. As of right now chapter 19 is finished and all I have to do is carefully edit while writting chapter 20.

The Duplicitous One : she's not unsure . . . just being difficult. Rogue's the type of girl that has to slowly get used to an idea. And yes, Logan is smart. He's not going to let her not be a prepared as humanly possible for an attack.

IrisWriter : yeah the trick is that I already have the next chapter written when I post the previous one. Rogue's flatiron is somewhere hidden far away from ROgue. Remy likes her hair curly and is determined to get his way. Yeah, since they do not know anything they just have to wait for something to happen and give them more clues, which is how it works in the real world.

ChamberlinofMusic : thank you. and yes. Remy needed to catch a break the poor guy. Yeah, Logan is a big teddy bear when it comes to Rogue.

tfobmv18 : senator's daughter? Not sure who you are refering to . . . Emma from a few chapters back? Yeah, it was about time their relationship moved to the next step.

Valnar : I do too. Its so cute on Rogue. So far Remy has not been concious to enjoy hearing his own accent coming from her lips. We'll have to change that

Shadow Hand Zealot : thanks. yes she could have just touched him with her hand. So that was her own confession to him.

* * *

Rogue had just managed to get Remy's unconscious body situated on her bed when she heard a firm knock on her bedroom door. She froze crouched over his still form praying that it was not Logan at her door about to kick it down and demand why the Cajun was passed out on her bed. The knock repeated again just as sure and firm as the first.

"Rogue . . . like I am worried about you. Can we like talk?" Kitty's voice said through the door. Now, Rogue was in full panic mode. She knew that no one was _supposed_ to enter her room without permission, but when had that ever stopped the people she lived with before? "Rogue . . . I'm coming in," the valley girl said.

"Wait!" Rogue yelled panicked. She quickly ran around her room like a chicken with her head cut off and found a blanket. She put it on top of the Cajun . . . like that was going to hide him, she thought ruefully.

"Rogue . . ." Kitty said in a worried tone as her head slowly phased through the door. There she stopped half in and half out staring open eyed at the body like form under a dark green blanket on Rogue's bed.

"Kitty, ya are supposed ta wait for the person ta open the door!" Rogue snarled.

"What is _that_?" the brunette demanded as she fully entered Rogue's room.

"A dead body . . . now go run along . . . ah need ta dig a hole." Rogue said. She hoped that Kitty would just accept her insane answer and leave, but she highly doubted it.

"Rogue . . . who is that?" Kitty asked slowly. Her voice even had a hint of worry as if she thought it might really be a dead body. Groaning, Rogue moved and pulled the blanket back revealing Remy's sleeping face. He was still smiling, Rogue noted. "Is he okay?"

"He's just fahne. Ah absorbed him that's all," Rogue said with a growl and sat down on her bed. Kitty's eyes seemed transfixed on the sleeping Cajun for a long time. Suddenly she stocked towards Rogue with a purpose. Rogue had barely enough time to rise into a defensive pose as Kitty grabbed her arm and phased them downwards.

Rogue hated phasing through things. It was the oddest feelings in the world . . . almost weirder than her absorbing people. They had been moving through solid mass for a while and Rogue was begging to wonder if Kitty was trying to take a trip to China. She was a little surprised when they fell into the danger-room observatory. Kitty recovered quicker than Rogue and marched up to the massive computer controls while Rogue glared at her friend on the floor.

Kitty pushed a few buttons not saying a word. Rogue slowly got up and gingerly sat in one of the rolling computer chairs in the room. Kitty had apparently cracked, however, she finally seemed satisfied with the computer and took a seat as well. She crossed her legs and folded her hands neatly on top.

"Okay Rogue . . . no one can eavesdrop or use powers of any kind to get into this room. It is sound and power proof at the moment. So now, you are like going to answer _all_ of my questions," Kitty said cheerfully.

"Seriously? Now?" was Rogue's only reply.

"Yep . . . and let's start with do you like Gambit?" the petite brunette asked.

Rogue groaned and after a long moment of silence replied, "Yeah." Kitty smiled at this and her eyes got that distant mischievous glint. It was a look that had Rogue instantly worried. It meant the girl was plotting.

"Does like Remy know this?" Kitty asked leaning back into her chair.

"Uh . . . he does not know for certain, but he thinks he does." Rogue said slowly. She wanted to bolt out of the room, but she had promised the girl.

"And like has he told you that he likes you?" she said rather quickly. Her voice was morphing into soprano. Rogue rolled her eyes and snorted. "I'll take that as a yes . . . wow this is like _so_ exciting for you. I thought I felt sexual tension between you two . . . so are you like going out now?"

"Kitty, the answer is no. The swamp rat does not even know that ah like him for sure. Ya are not ta tell him either! As of now we are just friends, and anotha thing . . . just because ah like him and he has a thing for meh does not mean we will evah go out. Okay, end of questions." Rogue said. She thought she had been very generous in telling Kitty what she wanted to know.

"Oh, Rogue," the shorter girl exclaimed exasperated. "He like _really_ likes you . . . I can tell. If you don't push him away things will work out for you two . . . seriously." Kitty sighed. "I have one more question . . . are you okay? I hear that some creep is taking pictures of you."

Rogue relaxed a little now that the conversation had been switched away from her love life. She figured the whole mansion knew about . . . those horrible photos. There were no real secrets at the Institute. "Yeah, ah am okay." Kitty's nose wrinkled slightly. Rogue recognized it instantly as the girl's worried look.

"Rogue . . . be careful. This is different from what we have faced before. I don't want anything to happen to you." Kitty said while looking down at her pink sneakers.

"Ah will be careful . . . now can ya hide meh for a while from the Cajun?" Rogue asked letting a tiny amount of pleading bleed into her voice.

"Why?" Kitty asked suddenly interested and forgetting her worry. Kitty was an easy girl to distract . . . not that Rogue did not legitimately want hiding.

"Well ah just ain't ready to face his cocky face just yet . . . let meh hide in peace ta at least dinner." Rogue said. Kitty's brows furrowed as she tried to divine the reason for Rogue's fears from her face. "Look, sug, ah'll tell ya if ya promise ta help me out."

"Okay, I promise to hide you from Gambit . . . but only if its good." She said with a smile.

"Well . . . he's gonna be cocky because I absorbed him by kissin' him." Rogue explained. It only took a moment for the information to settle in Kitty's mind before she shrieked in delight. Rogue winced . . . that girl could shatter glass if she had the mind to.

"Do you like know what this means? We can like go on a double date!" Kitty exclaimed rising from her chair. She was halfway to the door before she remembered her friend and tured back to look at Rogue over her shoulder. "Oh no . . . you're going to be difficult about this aren't you?" she asked. Rogue smiled for the first time since their conversation started and walked over to her friend.

"Ah don't know what ya are talkin' about, sugah," she said with a wicked grin.

* * *

A man in his early twenties sat behind a massive and intimidating desk. He seemed like an ordinary man with forgettable features. He was neither buff nor scrawny. His hair was well kept and was a mousy brown color that lacked any luster or appeal. His eyes were a common brown and held no great spark of life in their depths. This man was not particularly good looking . . . just sort of plain. His clothes were like that of a businessman . . . a perfectly ironed white long-sleeved blouse and black slacks. His tie was even plain . . . navy blue. Despite this man's seemingly ordinary appearance, he was quite the opposite.

A soft hesitant knock proceeded before a tall woman stepped inside. She was well built and seemed almost masculine in a way. Her hair was long and a rich jet black, which was a common characteristic of her Asian heritage. Her face looked almost Caucasian with the exception of her eyes. She approached the desk with a look of utter fear and placed onto of the grand mahogany desk a white envelope.

"June . . . I see that you have come back empty handed . . . well almost," the man said in a soothing low voice. He had no discernable accent. The woman was instantly retreating; however, she did not get far. She dropped to the ground like a dead body writhing on the carpeted floor in utter agony. Her mouth was open as if screaming, but not sound escaped her lips. Then as soon as the attack started it stopped.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed tears streaming down her face as she gasped for air. "Please don't kill me."

The man glared at her as he slowly reached for the envelope. His hands twitched eagerly and he took out the contents with such reverence. Three of them in total . . . it hardly made up for his loss. His fingers traced an outline over the woman's form on the image. Her eyes were wide with fear as she looked straight at him.

"You were going to use the cattle prod on _her_?" he demanded in sudden furry as if a switch had been turned on in an instant.

"I didn't know," June cried out still on the floor. "I am sorry, Master." She added when his silence frightened her more.

"I do not tolerate mistakes . . . or failure more than once. Get out of my sight . . . and go fetch the three I was telling you about. If they are not here by nightfall tomorrow I would seriously consider hanging myself . . . it would be more pleasant than what I would do to you if you failed me again." He said softly. The woman bolted and ran out of the room as quickly as humanly possible.

The man pulled out the tape from his drawer and quickly attacked them to the back of the photos. He arranged them to the right of his desk. It was a shame he had so few . . . and he wanted to see more than fear in her beautiful emerald eyes. He needed to see every expression imaginable on her face.

"Don't worry my love . . . I'm working very hard for us," he said to his pictures.

* * *

I love that Rouge tires to hide Remy under a blanket. Gotta hand it to Kitty . . . when she puts her mind to something it happens. And I have to say even I am creeped out by the bad guy. He is super creepy. In case you were wondering Kitty was Rogue's visiter. There is no way that Rogue can dodge the issue now with Kitty knowing everything. Well Please review.


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

* * *

The Bittersweet End : no clues here. you;ll have to wait and see : )

The Duplicitous One : normally i would not give away anything . . . but I will tell you it is not magneto. I have no plans for him to be in this story. Never really liked him . . .

AshmandaLC : Its fine. Thanks!

tfobmv18 : yeah. I'm sure Remy will manage it. He's the sly charmer afterall.

ChamberlinofMusic : yeah. We all do that some time. I was making a present for my best friend started coming in so I hid this huge trunk that I was painting under a blanket. That's where the line came from. Yeah Rogue needs Kitty.

nonentity eternal : yeah gotta love Kitty. I hate what Marvel does sometimes. That's why I love fanfiction.

Wanda W : Yeah I love that line. I can picutre Kitty's face when Rogue said that perfectly. Thanks. I want his idenity to be a secret til the very end.

summergirlforever : thanks. I thought we needed a break from the Romyness (I know unheard of right? But still needed once in a while).

IrisWriter : yeah he's bad, and worse he's creepy. Piotr will be in futurre chapters : )

jadeDino : thanks. Yeah he's a super creeper. You'll have to wait and see who he is . . .

* * *

Rogue woke from her sleep to the sound of something gently rapping on glass. She did not even need to look to know what she would find. She let him continue to knock for a while before rolling over in her bed. Remy was crouched on her balcony tapping insistently on her glass door. It took him a moment to realize she was awake and staring at him.

"Chere, it's cold," he said with a small pout. Rogue could not help but laugh at this. Even his pouting face was sexy. She also knew it was not true . . . they were having an unseasonably warm day.

"Well get in here," she said while slowly sitting up in her bed. She quickly raked her fingers through her hair and rearranged her long-sleeved black Muse tee-shirt. Remy let himself inside and quickly closed the door after him. Rogue was pleasantly surprised to see him wearing civilian clothes. His uniform did wonders at showing off his body, but when he wore casual clothes . . . well Rogue positively drooled.

At the moment, he had on old worn in light blue jeans, a tight dark red long-sleeved tee-shirt and over top of his clothes he wore his favorite brown jacket. Remy gave her a wholehearted smile before slowly walking towards her. He sat down on her bed rather close to the still sleepy southern belle.

Since Rogue kissed him there was a silent understanding between the two. Remy's lecherous comments increased and he was always there at her side. The gossip around the school was that they were an item, but Rogue had tried to correct this. After all, they were nothing officially. Remy reaching into his coat and pulled out a single red rose. He held it out to her like an offering. Rogue accepted the flower with a well developed blush in her cheeks.

"Did Remy ever tell ya, chere, dat ya are très belle?" he asked and his hand brushed her cheek with his gloved fingers. Rogue moved away from the touch with a soft chuckle. She brought the rose to her face and inhaled the fragrance deeply. No one had ever given her a flower before.

"Yes, ya have many times . . . and thank ya," she simply stated.

"Remy should have gotten ya a magnolia . . . mais dey are hard ta find in New York en hiver (in winter)." He said and reached out to caress her arm. It was gone before Rogue could swat him away. That boy just loved being unconscious. It was getting hard absorbing so much of him in her head. It was bad enough listening to the real thing make sexual comments, but having the voice in her head come up with them constantly was getting to be difficult to ignore.

"Well what do ya want?" she finally asked. Not that she did not love being woken up the way she just was, but Rogue had a reputation to protect after all.

"Remy wants ta spend de day avec sa chere," he said.

"I ain't gonna argue . . . ya'll just follow meh if ah say no," Rogue said. Her comment earned her a quick pout.

"Ya wound moi, chere. Ya know ya love dis Cajun." he responded with a small frown.

"Yeah? Well prove it," Rogue shot back. Her challenge made a naughty look cross the Louisiana man's face.

"Bien, Remy will," he said while shifting his weight slightly.

"Remy LeBeau ya bet—" Rogue started to say, but was tacked back into bed by a Cajun with a death wish. His hands were everywhere at once . . . caressing her side, her arms, and neck. Rogue was startled when a light fabric settled on her face. Before she could protest Remy's lips locked firmly onto hers. She panicked until realization hit her that the cloth was protecting him from her powers. It was an interesting sensation kissing him through a cloth. It was hard to believe one was even there as he gently bit her lower lip. Rogue was immensely embarrassed of the gargled moan that emitted from the back of her throat.

Rogue came to her senses soon after and threw him off her with force, and right off the bed. A second later Remy fell to the ground unceremoniously with a loud thud. Her heart was threatening to escape her chest and Rogue realized she was faintly panting. Remy's face popped up from the floor and gave her a smug grin.

"Remy t'ink he proved his point, non?" he asked. His teasing was slightly marred by the deep husky tone to his voice. He was also slightly out of breath . . . and not from any physical exertion.

"Ya didn't prove anythin' ah can't stand ya," Rogue teased, but she smiled at him to prove she did not mean her words. Remy stood from her floor and patted his pants as if they had gotten dirty, which of course they both knew had not. "Sugah, what did ya want because ah need ta take a shower and get dressed."

"Well . . . den don't let Remy stop ya. Please proceed," he said with a hand gesture towards her bathroom and a wiggle of his eyebrow. Rogue rolled her eyes at him and stood up on the opposite side on the bed. This action caused Remy's brows to knit together. "Remy wants ta do somethin' special aujourd'hui, seulement nous (today just us)"

"What did ya have in mind . . . ah can't exactly leave the mansion," Rogue asked while placing one hand on her hip.

"Non, Remy don't want ta leave . . . dat wouldn't be safe, Rogue. Just shower and dress . . . mais ne mange pas (but don't eat)" he said.

"Okay fahne. Now scoot!" she said gesturing to the door. Remy offered her one last smile before leaving her room.

Rogue emerged from her room thirty minutes later fully dressed. She had put on dark blue jeans, a maroon sweater, and of course her favorite black gloves. She even went as far as to put on a pair of cute black stiletto boots that Kitty had forced her to buy a month ago. She was happy to finally have her own flatiron back. She could not believe she had to actually sneak into the Cajun's room to get it back. She passed Bobby in the hall and he let out a long and low whistle at her approach. Rogue blushed slightly at this.

"Watch who yer whistlin' at garcon (boy)," a masculine voice growled behind Rogue. Bobby's eyes widened and he made an abrupt turnaround towards the other direction as Rogue turned to laugh at Remy's stern face. She was pleased that he was still slightly taller than her in the monstrous heels she was wearing. The lights in the hall flickered for a brief second, which seemed odd.

"Remy be careful or someone is gonna think ah am yer girl," she said and gave his arm a playful swat. Remy's brows crinkled slightly at her statement, but he made no further comment about the issue. "So, what's this somethin' special ya have planed?"

Remy's face brightened and he gave her one of his rare genuine smiles . . . not even a hint of his usual cockiness. It made Rogue positively melt inside. He laced his gloved fingers with hers and began leading her down to the first floor. Rogue ignored the stares the earned as they made their way.

Of course they had to pass Kurt and Logan. Both seemed to instantly be visualizing the Cajun's horrible death. When they passed Kitty on the way out the front door, Rogue could not help but notice her smile. Rogue let Remy take her outside and he stared making a slow path towards the cliffs that plunged down to the sea shore below.

The sun was shining and it was pleasant temperature wise with only the breeze making it slightly cold. Rogue was beginning to wonder where the crazy Cajun was taking her when she saw it. Just in front of the cliffs was a cutest picnic scene. There was an old blanket on the ground and a brown wicker basket.

"Is this the surprise?" she asked her voice slightly in awe. She had to hand it to the Cajun . . . he was smooth. Remy turned back to her with a smile playing on his lips.

"Oui . . . Remy knows dat ya can't leave de mansion, and he wanted ta do somethin' nice pour toi (for you). Ya need somethin' ta relax ya, chere." He explained as he dropped to his knees on the blanket. Rogue quickly followed suit and sat down near him. He opened the basket and pulled out a square warmer. Inside were two bowls of Jambalaya.

Rogue's mouth practically watered in anticipation. She loved Jambalaya . . . after all she was a southern girl. No place in New York had any decent southern food. Remy handed her one bowl followed by a spoon. Instead of digging into his own food he waited for her reaction. She knew that it was his recipe . . . Rogue knew Cajun Jambalaya when she saw it. So, to torture him she set her face firm to make certain she gave nothing away.

Nothing could prepare her for the flavor. She had to remember to not melt right in front of him as feelings of home washed over her. Now _this_ was food. Remy had to have spent the whole morning cooking. She chewed slowly enjoying the pensive expression on her fellow southerner's face.

"Merde, Rogue . . . you're killin' dis Cajun in anticipation," Remy complained. Rogue smiled and opened her mouth and fanned hoping to put out the fire. She was getting too used to Northerner food . . . Rogue had never met a Jambalaya that was her match.

"It's delicious," she answered. Remy chuckled and reached into the basket for two bottles of water. The one he gave to Rogue she placed next to her. No way was she seeking relief with water. She was a southern belle after all.

They continued their meal with light conversation. They talked about the South and how terrible it was to be up North in winter. Rogue had never had fun quite like when she was with Remy. He brought out a playful side to her that was non-existent beforehand. She felt relaxed in his presence and free to be herself. He was too good to be true . . . there had to be a catch. He had even made them Mississippi Mud for dessert . . . it was definite that Remy LeBeau was perfect for the Southern girl.

Rogue was gazing up at the sky considering such things with Remy lying next to her. She felt content and happy . . . where was her crazy mother or sentinel to ruin everything? Her ponderings were interrupted by the fact that Remy had edged closer and now their shoulders touched. She turned to him and smiled slowly. He was breathtaking.

"Rogue," he said slowly.

"Yeah?" she asked turning slightly to him.

"Ya know Remy likes ya, oui?" he asked. Rogue nodded . . . something about his tone kept her from teasing him. "Well . . . Remy knows ya like him, so why don't we make it official?"

Did Remy LeBeau just ask her out? Yeah . . . yeah he did. Rouge stared into his eyes, those lovely demonic red and black eyes. There was no escaping this . . . him, and she did not want to. It was hard to believe he wanted her, but then again all his action pointed to that yes, he did.

"Ya want meh ta be yer girl?" Rogue asked to clarify. The Cajun licked his lips slowly and nodded.

"Remy wants ya all to himself, chere. Remy wants ta be able ta kick any of does garcons dat try anything. Remy likes ya a lot, Rogue." He declared.

"Alright . . . but you get to tell Logan." Rogue said. Horror flashed on the Cajun's face. Apparently he had forgotten her over-protective father. Rogue laughed at his distress before placing her gloved hand on his cheek. "Don't worry, sugah, Ah'll be there with ya," she promised.

* * *

Okay . . . I might have rushed this, but I just could not picutre Remy beating around the bush once he knew Rogue liked him. He did wait a couple of days. Remy wanted to do something sweet for Rogue since she is really under house arrest. The others could probably leave in large groups, but Rogue leaving would be really unsafe. I love the kiss scene. I wanted to have something playful that did not end with an unconcious cajun. I also love how Remy yells at Bobby . . . too funny having Remy be jealous. I wonder how Logna is going to take the news? Next time: something is wrong with Kitty. Oh and my posting time is going to shorten because I'm working on a second story . . . so sorry if the updates start to come in slower. Well please review!


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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Temari's Angle : thanks i'm happy to hear it. Yes, the chapters are short (a little into four pages each in word). It try to keep the length consitant at least. I'm happy that it feels

like it fits the series.

Wanda W : happy to hear it didn't feel rushed. Yeah smart of Bobby to run the other way. remy the posessive and overprotective type.

drumgirl1923 : thanks

The Bittersweet End : I giggled a little too when I was proof reading.

Shadow Hand Zealot : happy ot hear it. Thanks on the foreign language . . . its not my strong suit. And I know Logan's reaction will be great . . . er messy.

jadeDino : yeah. he's smooth and sweet. I won't mind having a cavity like him

Valnar : yes, I'm sure that one day soon Rem'y going to be tied to a chair under a bright light with an angry Logan and Kurt threatening him and such . . . or something along thoses lines. We'll have to wait and see.

Ondjage : thank you

tfobmv18 : thanks

nonentity eternal : yeah. I was going to draw it out longer, but deicded that Remy would not just wait around. And yeah Logan's reaction will probably be . . . messy.

The Duplicitous One : uh . . . sory if I wasn't clear, but it isn't Joseph. No joe is this story so you don't have to worry.

IrisWriter : yeah, I agree that cheesy is good once in a while. Kitty will problably celebrate for sure . . . once she finds out.

* * *

Rogue ducked a second before a bow staff whipped the air where her head had been a second ago. She used the side of her hand to strike at her attacker's lower abdomen. A satisfying grunt escaped Remy's mouth before his staff cracked down on her shoulder. Rogue groaned out a profanity as she did a back flip kicking the Cajun's hands as she went and sending his metal staff high in the air.

The moment she was upright, Rogue snatched the staff a second before it fell to the ground. She stood with a large visible smile on her face. Remy stood as well with his hair falling in his face in a sexy sort of way. Rogue twirled the staff in her hand twice before taking it in her hand like a bat. They were having the time of their lives fighting while Logan and the new recruits were watching from the observation room.

Neither was trying to inflict any real harm or damage to the other. Both were holding back considerably, but not because they were teammates. No, Rogue thought with a smile. She was fighting her boyfriend. The word sounded lovely in her head . . . she was timid to say the words out loud in case it broke the spell. Plus, Logan still did not know. In fact, only the two involved knew of the newly changed status. Of course they had started their relationship the day before with the picnic. Rogue knew that Remy had probably offered himself to help train the newbies to get into Logan's good graces. Too bad it was not going to save him.

"Ah think ah am winnin' sugah," she called over to him.

Remy did not waste one second to respond saying, "How do ya figure dat, chere?" he asked. Rogue smiled and shifted her weight. She felt even more pleased when Remy's gaze flickered down to her hips before slowly traveling back up to her eyes.

"Well ah got yer staff. Ah don't think ya wanted meh ta have dis lovely weapon did ya? After all, yer at a disadvantage without yer powers." Rogue teased. A smug grin grew on the Cajun's lips.

"Yah can have Remy's staff any time ya want _it_, chere." He said with a voice like melted chocolate. Rogue felt a blush try and creep into her cheeks at the innuendo.

"_Stop flirting and fight_!" Logan growled over the intercom. Rogue's eyes flickered up to the control room a second before she lunged. Remy's upper body leaned backwards to an angle that would have sent most people to the ground as the staff swatted the air harmlessly above him. He then twisted and fell to the ground face first and swiped his foot causing Rogue to fall inelegantly to the floor. However, before Remy could attack again and pin her down, which was his favorite move, Rogue whipped the staff before her as she scrambled to get to her feet.

"Ye still sure ya gonna win, Rogue?" Remy asked Rogue with a smirk.

"Hell yah. Ya are goin' down, Swamp Rat," Rogue snarled, but she knew her voice could not wipe off the smile from her face.

"Do ya want ta make a wager, Rogue? Make a gamble?" Remy asked as they began to circle each other.

"Okay . . . what are yer terms, Cajun?" Rogue asked with a chuckle.

"_Gumbo! Stripes_!" Logan yelled. The couple ignored him; he was a safe distance away in the control room.

"De loser has ta do whatever de winner says pour un jour (for a day)," Remy stated.

"_Stripes_!" Logan snarled in fear hoping to appeal to what he hoped was the more reasonable of the two.

"Okay, Remy . . . ah agree so long as the winner doesn't ask the loser ta do anythin' morally corrupt . . . and if ya don't mind meh playin' dirty." Rogue said.

"D'accord . . . dats fine by Remy, chere. Be dirty all ye want . . . Remy don't mind at all. How about de first one te admit te defeat, or te leave de room wins?" He said and arched one eyebrow at her. Rogue laughed before she attacked. Remy probably either did not expect her to attack so soon, or he anticipated her to use the staff. Instead she kicked his side using the blade of her foot.

Remy cursed in French as his arms flung Rogue away from him. They both stood and stared into each other's eyes. Both were determined to win the bet. Rogue's grin turned downright evil, but Remy did not even flinch. She took a step forward while Remy shifted his weight ready to spring backwards if there was any need.

"Do ya have good concentration, Cajun?" Rogue asked coyly.

"Oui, Remy was a thief after all," he responded with a slight frown as if trying to understand why Rogue had asked the question. Rogue's innocent smile shifted and became almost predator like. Slowly, she lifted her free hand. Remy's eyes were glued to that hand as Rogue raised it to the top of the uniform and clasped the zipper of the tight black suit.

It was a slight change from her previous uniform and offered more protection. Rogue slowly tugged the zipper down until it reached the top of her bra and thus exposing quite a bit of cleavage. Remy's jaw slacked open and his eyes practically bulged out.

"_Stripes, what the hell do you think you are doing_?" Logan yelled through the intercom. Rogue did not answer him. She was teaching the girls in the room above that when pushed came to shove to use all their assets to their benefit. Perhaps it was not the best thing she should be teaching . . . but hey they were not exactly little kids . . . and the world was not a censored place.

A part of her was thinking these things, but most of her mind was pleased by the Swamp Rat's reaction. No guy ever drooled over her until Remy LeBeau. It made her feel downright sexy. But she was also thinking how much she wanted to win this bet. There were plenty chores on her to do list that she would love to hand off to someone else.

"Can ya concentrate now, sugah?" Rogue practically purred. Remy's gaze flicked back and forth between her chest and eyes.

"Merde," he said in almost a groan.

That was when Rogue tried to whack him in the side with his staff. However, Remy kicked her hand sending the staff flying into the air and clang noisily on the floor a few feet away. The next instant, Remy used the shook to tackle Rogue to the ground. He was straddling her the next instant with her hands pinned on either side of her head. His eyes searched deep into her emerald ones before Rogue caught his gaze move downwards transfixed on her chest.

"Ye admit defeat, chere?" Remy said in a husky voice. Rogue panicked and tried to buck him off, but Remy merely used his legs to hold hers down and leaned down on her chest to keep her still. He brought both of her hands upwards and held them down with one hand as he began to mercilessly tickle her. "Give up, Rogue?"

"_Sterves you right, Stripes_," Logan said chiming in as her screams of laughter could be heard. However, his voice reminded Rogue of an ace she had tucked up her sleeve. The move she was about to pull was downright dirty . . . but she had warned him right? Plus how dare he _tickle_ her?

"Logan! Remy's mah boyfriend!" she yelled. Panic overtook Remy's face as his hand froze on her side. The sound of claws coming out echoed through the danger-room. Rogue took this opportunity to flip Remy onto his back and she pinned him down like he had her.

"Dat's low, chere!" Remy cried out.

"Calm down, ah ain't gonna let him kill ya, yer too cute." Rogue said down to the Cajun beneath her. He was pouting, which was a good sign. It meant he was not angry with her . . . only feeling a little hurt in his pride. However, the pout turned to horror and the next instant Remy yanked her down and rolled full on top of her as his staff whistled past where her head had been. It kept flying until it lodged itself into the wall of the danger-room. That was the moment that Logan burst into the room. Rogue's eyes were wide as Remy looked her over inspecting her for any damage.

"What the hell happened?" Logan yelled as he looked back and forth between the Cajun lying fully on top of his surrogate daughter to the poll sticking halfway into the wall.

"De staff flew into de air on its own . . . are ye okay, chere?" Remy demanded when he noticed that Rogue was simply staring at him. He slowly got up and offered her a hand. Rogue allowed herself to be pulled to her feet as her eyes locked onto the staff. The speed that thing had been going . . . if Remy had not stepped in she would have died . . . impaled by a staff. "Chere," Remy said softer and cupped the side of her face with his gloved hand.

"Wh . . . Wh . . . What?" Rogue croaked out as Logan retracted his claws.

"Monsieur Loup (Mister Wolf), Remy t'ink Rogue is goin' into shock," he said. Rogue could only blink at this. This seemed to get Logan moving as he approached Rogue.

"Kid . . . are you okay?" he asked gruffly. When Rogue did not respond he turned to Gambit. "Should I slap her?"

"Ah . . . ah'm fahne . . . what happened?" Rogue asked.

"Don't know . . . let go of her, Gumbo. I don't want your hands on her . . . I'll kill you later, but for now, let's go see Hank . . .make sure you're okay Stripes," Logan said gruffly with his eyes burrowing into Remy's face. The Cajun was smart enough to relinquish Rogue, but had no intentions of not going to the clinic.

* * *

loved writting this chapter. This is the longest figt scene I have ever written. I love all of it . . . Rouge, Remy, and especially Logan. I bet you are wonder what's up with the staff trying to kill Rouge. I'll give you some hints . . . it has something to do with one of the new kid's (that i created) abilities (and no they did not attack Rogue . . . their power just will tell them who did attack Rogue). If you figure it out . . . I'll let you make a decision in the story. I'd be surprized in anyone does . . . but then again I've droped a couple of hints a few chapters back . . . Well I hope you liked this chapter. Next time: will Logan kill Remy? And where does this leave the bet? Who won? Well please review


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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kataragirl11 : thanks. I love cliffies. Yeah it was time for them to make it official.

Wanda W : thank you. Gotta love Logan and how they interact.

ChamberlinofMusic : yeah. Rogue can fight dirty. Thanks, they will be slower. Can't write so fast when I'm working on two.

jadeDino : Thanks. fight scenes are not my strong suit in my opinion. Yeah. At least she warned him . . . and he enjoyed every minute of it. Yeah. I bet he did see his life flash before his eyes.

The Bittersweet End : thanks

Temari's Angle : thanks. yeah . . . well at least now remy doesn't have to tell Logan himself.

tfobmv18 : thank you

Jigsaw 19 : thanks for your opinion. You are free to hate her as much as you like, just like I'm free to love Rogue's character.

CloeyMarie : very valuable lession i agree. can come quite in handy for a girl throughout life.

The Duplicitous One : you'll have to wait and see.

IrisWriter : yeah. remy is quike the hero. Logan probably won't be too happy.

nonentity eternal : thanks. what can I say i love twists. They keep things intersting. They are all planed twists . . . not just random. I'm trying to update consistantly. Thsi has been the longest between updates.

Shadow Hand Zealot : yeah i did enjoy writting it. Who would enjoy writing a fight scene full of flirting?

Valnar : yeah. she did warn him she would figt firty. thank you

RoseNoire313 : thanks. Lorna . . . do you mean Lorallie?

* * *

Rogue was still feeling a little out of it when Logan plopped her down on the medic examination table. Mr. McCoy was instantly looking her over shinning a bright light in her eyes and asking her to follow the movement of his finger. Coldness had settled on her and an uncontrolled shiver quaked her body. Rogue could feel them staring . . . Logan, Hank, and Remy. Rogue's eyes locked onto her boyfriend as he shrugged off his trench coat and moved to her side to wrap it around her shoulders.

"Could someone please explain to me why Miss Rogue is going into shock?" Hank asked as he disappeared into his office. Remy's hands came on either side of Rogue as he began rubbing gently trying to get some heat into her freezing body. Logan grumbled at this, but made no move to stop the Cajun.

"Monsieur McCoy . . . Rogue is très froid, (very cold)" Remy said with a hair of concern. Rogue had faced a lot of things . . . like the end of the world . . . everything her mother put her through. Her live had been threatened many times . . . so why did she have the urge to dive under the covers and cry like a baby?

Hank returned with a can of coke and a straw poking out. He came over to Rogue and placed in carefully in her hand. "Drink, we need to get some sugar in you." He said in a soft tone. When he turned to Logan his voice held an edge of hardness that left no room for debate. "Now, will you please explain to me what happened?" Rogue looked at the soda absently. Remy seemed to notice her lack of movement and pried it out of her hand and raised the straw to her lips.

"Stripes and Gumbo were fighting. Then suddenly Gumbo's staff tired to kill her . . . on its own. Since then Rogue's been . . . well you see her," Logan said in a tense voice. "Should we slap her?" he asked the doctor. Hank suppressed a laugh.

"No, I don't think that will help. I wonder if it was one of the psyches taking over? Who else was there?" Hank asked. Rogue released the straw and turned her face away. Remy sat down on the bed and pulled her to his chest. A strange feeling was taking over her . . . she knew it was foreign and not her own. Bad thoughts swirled in her mind.

"Chere?" Remy's voice said questioningly. "Are ye cryin', chere?" he asked shocked. All eyes turned to her as Rogue became distantly aware of the tears streaming down her face. She felt cold . . . cold and dead. She would never get to grow up and enjoy life. She would never feel the sun's warmth on her face again.

"Rogue?" Hank asked coming to lean near her face.

"Dis isn't normal . . . somthin' is wrong," Remy said close to panic. The door to the medic room swung open and Carter stepped inside.

Rogue's eyes narrowed down on the boy. He could _see_ her. This grey eyed boy with jet black hair could help her, she knew. "I think I can help," the young boy explained.

"Carter, I know you want to help and that Rogue is one of your teachers, but Mr. McCoy is the best person to help." Logan explained gruffly. Carter merely shook his head.

"Rogue's not okay because a ghost is attached to her. I know most of you don't believe in my powers, but I can see the woman plain as day. She's hovering half in Rogue half out." Carter said tensely. It was no secret that most did not believe in the boy's power to see and communicate with the dead, but Logan was not one of them. Rogue could tell that the man with claws sensed something.

"She smells of blood . . . and rot," Logan said. "Can you fix it, Casper?" Logan asked Carter. No one escaped getting a nickname from Logan.

"Yeah, I can make the spirit leave Rogue, but that does not mean she will stop trying to hurt Rogue," Carter explained patiently. "What do you want?" he said his eyes locked on Rogue and the spirit. Rogue shivered violently, but relaxed when Remy's arms tightened their hold. "Rogue, don't fight so much. I need to know what she wants."

"Don't call me Rogue! My name is Emma. I won't let her live! It's her fault that I'm dead," a voice said coming from Rogue's lips, but the voice was not her own.

"You cannot take over her body. You have no right. You are dead and have no claim to this flesh. Leave now and I will hear you out." Carted demanded and his eye eyes turned solid pits of black. Rogue gave a cry of pain and went limp against Remy. The . . . ghost was gone. After a moment she sat up on her own, but let Remy keep his arms protectively around her body.

"Why is it mah fault she's dead? Ah don't even know an Emma," Rogue asked. She got to her feet when the color drained from Carter's face. Logan bet her to it and steered the boy into a chair.

"She's a new ghost . . . angry. She was kidnapped and experimented on . . . she died. She says that it was all for you Rogue. She's confused though . . . she's not a strong spirit. Emma . . . Emma Gracelee. She was a mutant. She's tied to you . . . probably won't leave until her death is justified. She can't decide if she wants to kill you or protect you . . . spirits who die violent deaths are like that sometimes. I've ordered her not to harm you, but I'm afraid she has a right to haunt you until she moves on," Carter said. By the end of his speech he looked tired and his eyes had turned back to normal.

Rogue walked over and knelt next to him. "You okay, sugah?" she asked in concern. Carter offered a slight bob of the head in reply. Rogue's eyes flickered to the door seeing all of the new mutants collected together in their worry about their friend and teacher. "Lorallie, could ya help Carter to his room. He seems a bit tired?" Rogue asked the blonde and green skinned girl. She quickly complied and the two students left. When Rogue rose to her feet everyone was still staring as if she would suddenly grow two heads, horns, and breathe fire.

"Are we to believe that . . . this Emma Gracelee was the victim who died in the warehouse?" Hank asked.

"Don't know . . . ah can kinda feel her still here . . . watching. Just mah luck ah get a ghost following meh. Ah would love to have Carter ask her more, but he seemed exhausted." Rogue said.

"I think someone needs to speak about this to Charles . . . and I think I will do just that . . . check up on Carter on the way. To think . . . ghosts are real . . . hum," Mr. McCoy said with a far away voice. "Rogue, you should stay here for a bit . . . make sure there are no complications from this." He said before leaving the medic wing.

"You okay Stripes?" Logan demanded. He was obviously a little shook up from the ordeal. Rogue felt much better than she had. It unnerved her that a ghost was following her.

"Yeah, ah feel better after Carter did whatever he did," she said with a shrug.

"Gumbo!" Logan growled suddenly. Apparently he had not forgotten what Rogue had sprung on him earlier.

"Oui," Remy replied evenly and calmly, but Rogue could see worry in his eyes.

"Rogue is well loved around here . . . you hurt her and there will be _nowhere_ to hide. I will personally gut you and let the others give you a good kick." Logan snarled before turning on his heels and storming towards the exit. "The rest of you back to the danger-room!" he said before the doors swung close behind him leaving Rouge and Remy alone in the room.

An awkward silence ensued until Remy broke it saying, "So . . . does dis mean dat Remy won de bet?" Rogue laughed at this, which was what he was aiming for because the second she did he relaxed his stiff shoulders.

"Sure, Cajun . . . what do ya have planned for meh tomorrow?" she asked and came to his side. Wordlessly he pulled her between his legs and wrapped his arms protectively around her back as Rogue buried her face in his shoulder and inhaled deeply. He smelled wonderful.

"Remy don't want demain (tomorrow) he wants samedi . . . de tous les samedi (Saturday . . . all of Saturday)," he murmured into her hair.

"Okay, Remy . . . you have meh all Saturday . . . after all, ah would have a pretty big hole in mah head if it weren't for ya. Thank you," she said. In his arms, she felt the fear of what almost happened slip away.

"C'est rien, mon coeur (it's nothing my heart). Don't scare Remy like dat again, d'accord? (okay)" he asked.

"Ah'll try . . . but mah name ain't Rogue for nothin'," she responded. Despite her words, Rogue wanted nothing more than to stay in his arms forever. He felt safe . . . like home. Even when she was being possessed by a crazy ghost she had taken comfort in his presence. Someone loving her the way he did was not something she deserved, but she would be damned before she let go.

"Yer name ain't Rogue, chere. Don't lock yerself inta somethin' yer not. Just like Remy's name ain't Gambit . . . he's more den dat," he whispered. Rogue sighed knowing he was right.

"Mah real name . . . its Anna Marie," she told his shoulder. The next instant Remy was pulling her onto his lap. His gorgeous red and black eyes pierced her to her soul as Rogue waited anxiously for a reaction.

"Dat's a beautiful name, chere. Remy t'inks its très joli (very pretty) . . . Anna Marie," he said and kissed the top of her head. Rogue could feel it faintly through her hair. She never cared for her name, but it did sound nice coming from his lips in a Cajun accent. Not many people knew the name she had been given at birth . . . just Logan and the Professor. "Mercy, chere," he said as his fingers brushed her cheek in a feather light caress.

"For what?" she asked. His hand dipped lower to her throat and stopped momentarily on her shoulder.

"For givin' dis Cajun somethin' important t' ya. Remy knows ya don't share yer name wit just anyone. He's honored dat ye shared it with him," he explained. Rogue smiled and closed her eyes feeling suddenly tired. Remy shifted until they were both lying on the table with Rogue resting comfortably on top of him and his arms wrapped securely around her waist.

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Okay . . . I hope you all arn't going what the heck . . . ghosts? Carter can see ghosts. Having Emma's ghost will come in handy . . . well maybe not for Rogue. Only one person got part of it and that was Shadow Hand Zealot. So congratz. Shadow Hand Zealot tell me one thing you would like to see happen on Remy's Saturday with Rogue (it won't be next chapter, but the one after that probably). As for this chapter . . . I love that Rogue told Remy her real name . . . and Logan's threat. Of course there is always Kurt who still has no idea that Remy is dating his sister. That should be interesting (I already have something planned). This chapter was somewhere between serious and sweet with the Romy moments. Well please review!


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I do not own the X-men

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AshmandaLC : thank you

nonentity eternal : the ghost will be more helpful when she's calmed down. But yeah she will be a lead in time. Kurt probably won't take it well. In fact you will find out how he takes it next chapter. Rogue and Remy's staturday will be the 24th chapter now. Just as a heads up, but I'm still excited to write it.

jadeDino : thanks. Good. I was not sure if the whole ghost thing was too much . . . I mean its a series about mutants . . . so things like that fit . . . well I don't think a writer could get away with vampires or drangons or anything . . . sorry I am rambling. Yeah a bit of an excorcism with Carter. Kind of a creepy but cool power.

IrisWriter : there's not real carter. I made him up. I need young studients for Rogue to teach since everyone else is too close to her age to take her seriously as an adult figure. Yeah. Emma is always going to be there, but if she's not making her presence know . . . well its not like Rogue can see or talk with Emma. And Emma will be too weak from doing what she did to make anything move for a while.

Shadow Hand Zealot : thanks. I got your message. I know which one I am going to use. It will be not the next chapter, but the one after that. I'm going to finish reading your story when I get some more spare time and answer your question.

Wanda W : yeah. I figured that Logan would believe him. Afterall he could tell that Rogue smelled different, plus he's been around so long he's probably at some point had experience with ghosts. They used Emma's comment to connect her to the whole kidnapping thing, but other than that i think they were too freaked to comment further. Yeah, Remy was being very sweet and caring. I figured Logan would not let time in the danger-room slip by . . . near death and ghosts won't stop Logan.

tfobmv18 : thanks. Hum . . . they might be able to contact her cousin. That might be hard since she's still a confused spirit. Maybe after her she has gotten a little Justice for her death she'll be able to communicate something like that.

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It was halfway through the week and Rogue was going out of her mind in boredom. Or at least that was when she was pleading. Nothing else could explain why she was doing extra danger-room sessions with Logan willingly. However, it did take the edge off her anxiety and some of her cabin fever. They had tried to get something useful out of Rogue's new silent friend, but so far the ghost had been rather unhelpful. Rogue finished drying her hair with the towel as she paced her room.

She pulled on a pair and dark jeans and a long-sleeved swooped necked sweater. Rouge felt better after the shower . . . relaxed. She had plans to go hunt down Remy and spend some time with him, but first she wanted to go talk to the Professor and see if they had any information on Dorian and the other mutants that had been kidnapped.

Pulling on her gloves, Rogue headed towards the Professor's office. Hopefully Cerebro had caught something . . . but Rogue knew that if it had the x-men would be halfway there already. However, she still wanted to ask. Rogue approached his door and raised her hand to knock, _Come in Rogue_. She twisted the door knob and let herself inside before quietly closing the door. Charles Xavier was waiting near his file cabinet with a folder in hand. He gave Rogue a small smile before tucking the folder away and giving her his whole attention.

"Rogue, how are you feeling?" he asked as he pushed his chair forward and gestured for her to sit in the chair before his desk. Rogue took a seat while the Professor wheeled over to position behind his desk.

"Oh . . . ah am fahne. Just getting' used to my new invisible buddy," she said not wanting to dwell too much on her ghost. Charles nodded with a thoughtful look. "Can ya read her mind?" she asked suddenly curious.

"No, I cannot even sense her. I am afraid that is not how my powers work. Did you wish to discuss anything with me?" he asked.

"Yeah . . . ah was wonderin' if ya know anything new about Dorian?" she asked.

"No, sadly. Cerebro has not registered anything. I am afraid that we can do nothing without any lead. Carter I understand had gained no helpful information from your . . . invisible friend as you put it. The unfortunate fact may be that we never get any more clues about Dorian. As of today I am lifting the ban on students from leaving the Institute grounds provided the go in groups of at least three. I still think it would be safer for you to remain on the Institute grounds for a while longer." He said and linked his hands together.

Rogue frowned at his statement. She did not think it was a good idea to let the younger students roam freely, but she trusted his judgment. "Oh . . . ah kind of figured that," she answered softly. The Professor then became extremely still and his eyes glazed over. Rogue recognized the look that accompanied Charles having a conversation with someone far away. Suddenly he snapped out of it and locked his eyes back on her with a worried expression.

"Rogue, as much as I would love to discuss this further something has come up that demands your attention," he stated.

Rogue blinked a few times not expecting that. "Meh?" she asked.

"Yes, Kitty is home early from school. She is very upset. I have never sensed her this way before. You are the closest to her . . ." he said trailing off. At the mention of Kitty, Rogue rose from her seat.

As she pulled the door open she called back behind her, "Don't worry about it, ah'll take care of Kitty." She promised before closing the door and sprinting towards her friend.

She knew if Kitty was upset she would find her in the library. She was halfway there when she spotted Remy walking towards her. He started grinning at the sight of her. However, as he reached for her Rogue twirled out of his outstretched arms and kept moving towards the library.

"Chere?" Remy said with a question as he began chasing after her.

"Sorry, Swamp Rat, but somethin' is up with Kitty . . . ah'll talk to ya later," she explained. Remy frowned and snatched her wrist forcing her to stop.

"Is everything alright?" he asked clearly concerned. Rogue sighed and turned back to him. Who knew that the former thief and bad guy was really such a softy?

"Yeah, everythin' is fahne sugah. The Professa just told meh that Kitty's upset. Now, ah am goin' ta go find her and see what's wrong." She said and caressed his cheek through her glove. Remy took that hand and planted a kiss on it before letting her go.

"D'accord . . . Remy will see you later. Go help the petite, chere." He said. Rogue smiled and turned to leave. She could feel Remy still watching her.

"What are ya doin'?" she asked.

"Just watchin' ye leave, chere. You have a lovely backside," he answered slowly. Rogue felt herself blush as she turned and headed to the library swinging her hips provocatively.

She found Kitty tucked in the back of the library a the big comfy chair that swallowed her. It was a comfort chair. She was typing away furiously at her laptop while tears streamed down her face. Rogue could see that physically they girl was fine, so the issue was an emotional one. If her hunch was right it was something that had been coming for a long time. She did not pause in her work as Rogue approached.

"Hey Kitty, what wrong?" Rogue asked as she crouched down in front of her friend. Kitty glanced up at her once before slamming down on the keyboard a few more times. "Is it Lance?" Rogue pressed. The word "Lance" gained a sob out of the small brunette as her shoulders began to shake. Rogue gently picked the laptop off her friend's lap and placed it on the floor close by.

"H . . . he . . . he _dumped_ me!" Kitty cried and collapsed onto Rogue's shoulder. Rogue stiffened worried that part of her skin might touch the girl, but it seemed they were both protected by clothes.

"It's okay Kitty. He doesn't deserve ya. Let it out," she comforted. Kitty did indeed let it out with loud wails. Rogue needed to pay the earth mover a visit . . . one that would end in a broken nose if she had her way. She patted Kitty's back gently until she finally stopped and sat up in the chair.

"Like sorry about that," Kitty said in a soft and sad voice. There were still tears in her eyes, but it was more controlled now. "He . . . he said that we would never work out . . . that we were too different. Lance said that I was going to leave him anyways so we might as well end it now. God, I haven't even decided if I am going to go away for college. I mean . . . am I wrong for considering leaving?" Kitty asked.

"No, sugah. Its yer life and ya only get one. If going away from Bayville is what ya want ta do he should have supported ya." She answered honestly. Kitty nodded silently.

"Like . . . how are things between you and Remy? I heard a rumor that you two were dating." Kitty accused. Rogue sighed. Now was not the time to tell her best friend who just got dumped that she had a new boyfriend. She was surprised it was not more than a rumor . . . the other students must have thought she was joking when she called Remy her boyfriend in the danger-room Sunday. She probably should have told Kitty already . . . but what was done was done.

"Ya don't want ta talk about that," she told her friend.

"No you don't. Come on talk to me . . . it will like distract me." Kitty pleaded.

"Yeah . . . we're datin'," she said. The phrase sounded good upon her lips. Her words seemed to comfort Kitty in a weird way and her tears stopped completely.

"That's good. I'm like really happy for you Rogue. You deserve happiness. Ugh! I am so like not going to cry about _him_ anymore. I also like heard that you almost had an accident . . . there has been talk about Remy getting a little too carried away in the Danger-room" Kitty said as she rubbed her eyes with her fists. Is that what people were saying? Rogue felt horrified at the idea. He had saved her!

"No, well ah did almost have an accident, but Remy _saved_ meh. It sort of involves a ghost . . . a girl who was kidnapped had died and decided to haunt meh. She tried ta kill meh with Remy's staff. Ah'll kill those kids for spreadin' that rumor." She said with venom. At the mention of near death Kitty's eyes got huge in fear. "Don't worry sug. The ghost ain't tryin' ta hurt meh anymore. Everything is fahne." Rogue assured.

"Wow . . . like that just goes to show you like how far off rumors can get." Kitty replied. Rogue fought off a laugh. Kitty was the Queen of all rumors and gossip. God love her though if this helped reform her way, but Rogue sincerely doubted it. Gossip was too much of a Mansion favorite past time . . . more than mutant ball.

"Come on get up, sugah." Rogue said with a jerking motion with her head accompanies by her words.

"Uh . . . like where to?" Kitty demanded as she stood.

"We're goin' ta the kitchen and taken a pint of ice-cream from the freezer and going ta yer room ta burn some photos of Lance." Rogue explained.

"That sounds great. You know you're pretty good at this you know," Kitty informed her with a small genuine grin despite the tear tracks that were still quite evident on her face.

"Good at what?" Rogue asked. Suddenly Kitty latched herself on Rogue's arm for a hug. She released her almost immediately.

"At like being the comforting best friend. Thank you," Kitty said. Rogue felt her throat tighten. No one had even said that about her before. Usually when her and the word comfort came up it was typically with the opposite sentiment. "How are we going to burn his pictures . . . I like don't have any matches or a lighter do you?"

Rogue smiled. "Don't worry. Ah think ah know where ah can find a lighter," she assured and steered Kitty out of the Library. The brunette scooped up her laptop before following her friend. They were odd friends who grew to care for each other due to living conditions, but somehow the pair worked . . . like opposites they complimented each other.

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So. Hum. A lot of this chapter is just plain updates and set up. Don't worry the plot is not gone! I promise we will hear more from poor Dorian and our eveil kidnappers, but these things take time. I mean evil villians can't be incompotent idiots all the time. So yes we will get back to the overall plot soon enought. I love how Rogue kept going when she saw Remy. I bet his facial expressions was funny . . . and I bet he was not expecting that. Poor Kitty. Lance is a jerk (at least in my story anyways). don't worry I'm sure Kitty will find love again ; ) And look at Rogue being all supportive. Next time: Rogue finds out exactly how overprotective her brother is, we get a Romy moment, and burn a few things. Well please review!


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I do not own x-men

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tfobmv18 : yeah. that's actually what i do when my friends get broken up. Buy Ben and Jerry's and burn the guy's stuff (nearly burned down a friends house doing it once though . . . )

I love it. Rogue really good at figuring out how to deal with ex-boyfriends. I can't wait to see what'll happen next. Keep up the good work.

nonentity eternal : yeah you need a break for a side story like this. Life does go on. Yeah poor Kitty

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Rogue headed towards Remy's room after leaving Kitty to collect all the Lance related items and a pint of Ben and Jerry's Ice-cream in hand. She approached his door and heard utter silence . . . perhaps he was out. Rogue knocked hesitantly and got no reply.

Knocking again, she called out, "Remy? Its meh," she said. The door flew open revealing a Cajun with a lost expression. Rogue was instantly alarmed. She had never seen him like this before. "Sug, what wrong?" she demanded and placed her hand on his arm. Remy shook his head and moved so that she could enter. Rogue stepped inside keeping her eyes glued to his black and red ones. Her eyes flickered to the rest of the room causing her to panic and her heart to leap in her throat.

All of his stuff was gone . . . even the sheets on the bed were missing and all that could be seen were a few hangers on the floor and the uncovered mattress. Was he leaving? They just got together . . . was there something wrong at home?

"Where is all yer stuff?" she demanded almost angry to his face. It was more fear than anything. Had she done something wrong? Remy said nothing as he shuffled past her and sat down on the mattress with his head in his hands his body was shaking. "Remy Etienne LeBeau!" she snapped. This gained her his attention. He noticed her fear and panic and was at her side in an instant pulling her into a fierce hug. His gloved fingers buried themselves into her hair. "You're scarin' meh," she whispered.

"Remy don't know how te deal with this. Remy . . . Remy's been robbed. Oh the shame! Mon Dieu, je dois à cacher mon visage! Je suis un voleur! (My God, I have to hide my face! I am a thief!)" he declared and tightened his grip to almost painfully tight. Rogue could not help but relax . . . if that was all it was she could handle it. Then a fowl stench hit her nose . . . it smelled familiar . . . like rotten eggs. Rogue forcefully pushed Remy away so that she could breathe. He let her move slightly out of his embrace, but left his hands on her hips.

"Don't worry sugah . . . ah know who took yer stuff. Ah have to finish takin' care of Kitty, but ah promise ah will get yer stuff back before the end of the day." She assured.

His dark eyes narrowed in on her and Rogue took an involuntary step backwards. The expression of his face promised pain . . . lots of it. Logan would have been impressed. Rogue was more than shocked . . . which was why she was backing up and away from her sweet loving boyfriend. He followed until her back was flush against his closed door. Remy placed his hands on either side of her head.

"Chere . . . tell me who did this," he said in a dangerous purr. Rogue wondered if he knew how much he was unnerving her. She knew the anger was not directed at her, but she did not want it directed at the thief either.

"No, trust meh ta handle this," she said back in a confident voice. Remy smiled at her and one hand moved to cup the side of her face tenderly despite his earlier expression and voice.

"Remy knows how te make ye talk, chere." He replied in a husky voice making Rogue shiver. The hand dipped lower and skimmed the side of her breast before quickly moving down to her hip. A soft moan escaped Rogue's lips. If this was how he intended to try and get some information out of her . . . well where did she need to sign up?

"Ah ain't tellin' ya," she said in a breathy voice. Remy smirked at this and picked her up by her hips and using his body pinned against the door to hold her up. Rogue wrapped her legs around his waist while one of his hands pinned both of hers above her head.

"You sure of that Rogue . . . Remy can be quite convincing," he stated with his lips hovering over hers. Rogue bit her bottom lip and gave her head a little shake careful not to make and skin contact. Then his hands were on her bottom as he lifted her off the door and carried her to the bed. Rogue's pulse quickened as laid her gently down and he kneeled over her. Remy reached in his coat and pulled out a silk handkerchief. Another moan emitted from Rogue's lips as she recognized the fabric.

Remy smiled and all the earlier anger and aggression was gone. Rogue had no doubt that he had completely forgotten all about his stuff being stolen as he carefully paced the cloth over her face. His lips crashed into hers and demanded that she respond. Rogue kissed him back as her hands became lost in his hair pulling him closer to her. His tongue caressed her lower lip . . . a silent request for entry.

Rogue flicked his tongue with her own. That seemed to be all the permission he required as they soon lost themselves in kisses and tongues. It did not take long for both of them to explore each other's bodies. They broke apart after a long time panting for breath. Remy removed the thoroughly soaked handkerchief from her face and collapsed on his back gasping for air by her side.

"Remy?" Rogue eventually asked.

"Oui, mon amour?" he responded as he pulled her into his arms. Rogue rested her head on his chest wanting to savor the moment a little longer.

"Please let meh handle this. Ya trust meh right?" she whispered. She felt him plant a kiss on the top of her head.

"Oui . . . Remy trust ye," he said. His voice was still deep . . . full of desire. Rogue smiled happy that she had created it.

"Oh and Remy?" she asked while lifting her head desperate to look into his eyes.

"Oui, chere?" he replied. Rogue skimmed her hands along his rock hard abs.

"Feel free ta try that again any time ya want," she practically purred. He responded with a grin that seemed far from innocent.

"Even if Remy wants te do dat in front of all de x-men?" he demanded. Rogue laughed picturing him pinning her down on the danger-room floor with the others gasping in shock in the background. Their facial expressions would be priceless.

"Sure, sugah . . . that is if ya think ya can get away with that without Logan turnin' ya into a pin cushion. Oh, and Remy . . . do ya have a lighter?" Rogue asked. She had left Kitty alone for too long. She was supposed to be comforting her friend not having an intense making out session with her boyfriend.

"Uh . . . oui," he said and fished in his pocket and pulled out a zippo lighter. Rogue accepted it and kissed his hair before springing out of the bed before he could pull her back and start on round two.

"Chere?" Remy demanded sitting up with a frown.

"Kitty's still pretty upset. Lance broke up with her . . . so ah need ta be with her. Ah will take care of yer missin' stuff soon. Don't worry ah'll handle it." She said and headed to the door.

"Chere," he called. Rogue paused and turned. He had his head propped up by one arm and was giving her the sexiest look. If she did not love Kitty so dearly that look alone would make her say 'screw it' and climb back on that bed with him. "Remy wants te finish our . . . conversation later," he said huskily. Think of Kitty . . . think of Kitty, Rogue repeated in her head.

"Okay," Rogue managed to say before darting out of the room before she was tempted to return.

When she entered Kitty's room she had managed to get the bulk of her hormones under wrap. Kitty had a huge box ready and was halfway through the ice-cream. She seemed in the same emotional state that Rogue had left her in, which was good. It eased some of Rogue's guilt about getting sidetracked with Remy.

"Did you get a lighter?" Kitty asked staring at a photo of her and Lance. A moment later she ripped it in half placing the half of herself on the bed and the other she threw into the box.

"Yeah," Rogue replied. Kitty glanced up and gasped before coming to examine Rogue's face closely. Rogue backpedaled away from her friend confused by her bizarre behavior.

"What happened? Your lips are like all swollen." Kitty pointed and gave Rouge a look over as if she were afraid her best friend was hurt. Rogue felt the blood pool in her cheeks. Was it that obvious? "Why are you blushing? Oh . . . oh . . . you got the lighter from Gambit didn't you? So . . . is he a good kisser?" Kitty demanded with a smile. Rogue groaned and buried her face in her hands. "I'll take that as a yes," Kitty said with a small laugh. Rogue was happy Kitty was laughing . . . even if it was at her own expense.

"So, let's go burn this jerk out of yer life. Then ah need ta leave for a bit. Ah have another crisis ta deal with." Rogue said and took the box in hand.

"What's wrong?" Kitty demanded.

"Nothin' just Kurt being overprotective. Ah kind of want ta keep it on the hush . . . Remy would be upset if he knew other people knew what Kurt did." She explained.

"Kurt like did something to Remy? That's kind of sweet in a way that he's so like overprotective." Kitty said as they made their way outside. It was the only safe place to do burn things without someone who could control fire nearby.

"Remy didn't think it was too cute . . . although he has no idea who did it . . . ah was worried he might get revenge on his own. But first, lets burn Lance's crap . . . ah hope this shirt was his favorite." Rogue said earning her a small chuckle from Kitty.

Rogue glanced around her brother's room. She felt him watching her from somewhere. Remy was going to get Remy's stuff back and she was going to teach her brother that as much as she loved him, the Cajun was off limits for brotherly tourment. Only she could inflict embarrassment and pain on her Swamp Rat.

Planting her hands on her hips, Rogue called out, "Kurt, ah know ya are in here. Come in front of meh right now!" she said in a tone you would use to scold a child. With a poof he was standing before her on his bed with his arms crossed defiantly over his chest.

"Rogue," he replied and then grinned. Apparently, he was pleased with his handy work.

"Kurt! Yah are goin' ta give Remy back all of his stuff . . . exactly how he had it! He's mah boyfriend and ya just have ta accept that." She said.

"Nicht! (no)" he said vehemently.

"Yah asked for it!" she said while reaching into her back pocket for her phone. When she flipped it open her brother's yellow eyes widened in horror as he stared dumbfounded at a picture of him when he was an infant with a diaper on and a teething ring in his mouth. Rogue thought the picture was cute, but she knew her brother would be mortified by it. He lunged for it, but Rogue quickly put it away in the safely of her pocket.

"Ver did you get that!" he cried. Rogue smiled devilishly.

"From yer foster mom. Ah had the most wonderful conversation with her . . . she's sendin' meh a few other pictures. She thought ah should see mah baby brother growin' up. So, if ya give Remy all his stuff back and tell no one about what ya did this picture will remain in the family. If not . . . well ah can text it ta everyone faster than ya can teleport." Rogue said with laughter in her voice.

"Okay . . . I vill give the dummkopf (jackass) his stuff back . . . I never vant to see dat picture again!" he said before teleporting away. Rogue smiled and looked at the cute picture.

"And that's why ya never mess with meh," she said to no one before exiting her brother's room. It was all in a day's work.

* * *

I know I just updated . . . but I wanted to post this since they go so tightly together. Also, I won't be updating this story for a few days. So these two will have to tide you over. I have been wanting to do a hot and spicy romy scene . . . so voila! I love that Kurt stole all of Remy's stuff. In case you were wondering he teleported it far away. Remy might be a thief, but he doesn't take being stolen from very well does he? Poor Rogue getting caught making out with her boyfriend. And I love the Rogue and Kurt scene. Such cute sibling stuff. Okay till next time! Oh and please review!


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I do not own x-men

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jadeDino : (23) : yeah some of that was taken from my life. No siblings, but I have blackmail photos of my best friends. And I have burned plenty of ex-boyfriend boxes in my day (nearly burned down a house once though . . . now we keep a fire extinguisher nearby).

jadeDino : (22) thanks. I think Rogue would be a great person to lean on . . . she's just bad at doing the leaning herself. k

ataragirl11 : thank you

Wanda W : (23) thanks. I figured that would be probably the worst thing you could do to a thief. And it seemed like something Kitty would do . . . find comfort that her friend was happy. She's a very innocent characters.

Wanda W : (22) I want to mysterious and say yes that file is important, but no sadly I didn't thing of that. I just did not want him sitting behind his desk like usual. I mean the guy has got to move away from it sometime. No, Emma won't be quiet for long. Yeah Remy is the considerate sensitive envelop pusher. What happend to Kitty happened to a friend of mine sadly. But it was for the best. I don't think those two would ever work in the long run.

IrisWriter : leave gotta love Kurt. You'll be getting some info about the overall mystery soon I promise.

summergirlforever : thanks

drumgirl1923 : thank you

Shadow Hand Zealot : I actually had a friend of mine have this happen to them. The guy said pratically the same thing. She was leaving so why delay the inevitable. thanks

RogueNya : he will probably leave him alone . . . for now

tfobmv18 : yeah gotta love moms. They always love to share the most embarasing pics. Thanks for the German advice. I know nothing about German and used Good translator.

* * *

The sun filtered into Rogue's room and rested on her sleeping face slowly waking the young mutant from her dreams. It was Saturday, and she smiled in anticipation and excitement. Today, she was at Remy LeBeau's mercy. Rogue had a sort of morbid obsession over what outrageous ideas he probably had planned for them. She was still smiling when she sat up alert and ready in her bed, but what she saw wiped the smile off her face.

Her room looked like a war zone with her stuff stern everywhere. There was not a single free space on the ground. The light fixtures flashed on and off as her ghost took silent credit for the destruction. Rogue let out a scream of anger and frustration.

"Damn it!" Rogue snarled. "Yah better put all this back! Yer not funny missy!" Rogue chastised. Then her door burst open as Logan, Scott, Kurt, and Remy stood in the entrance of her room poised and ready for attack. Rogue glanced at them open mouthed.

"What the hell!" Scott exclaimed as he saw the condition of the room. Then all the men looked at Rogue who had been asleep and was only half dressed. Rogue was instantly blushing and covered her chest with her bed sheet. Normally she wore sweatshirts and sweatpants to bed, but she needed to do laundry, which was why she was wearing the slutty nightgown that Kitty bought her when she had a room all to herself.

"Get the hell out!" she screamed. It was sweet that they all came running to her aid upon hear her screams, but a crowd was forming outside of her room.

"Bon matin, chere" Remy called with a wink.

"Stripes?" Logan said in the form of a question.

"It's just Emma! Now, get out!" she yelled. However, before they could ask more questions or even attempt to leave a force pushed them roughly out of the room before slamming shut on their stunned faces. Rogue was a little shocked at this. "Thanks," Rogue told her ghost while running her fingers through her hair and letting the sheet fall to her waist. The light flickered in acknowledgement.

Carter had warned Rogue that Emma would get her strength back. What he did not tell her was how to keep Emma from doing things like taking it upon herself to redecorate her room. Rogue sighed not wanting to deal with a ghost today of all days.

"Look," Rogue began and kicked the covers off her feet. "Ah get it . . . some reason you are mad at meh, but Carter said you also feel protective towards meh." Rogue stated. The lights signaled agreement. "Okay, so how about this . . . ah promise not ta give up or let anyone else give up on tryin' ta bring down this monster. In return yah have ta stop doin' things like this," Rogue said and pointed to the chaos. Rogue knew without the lights that this please Emma. She could feel the oppression of the room lift and her stuff began to levitate and move back to its original locations. The sight of her stuff flying around her room unnerved Rogue so she slipped into her bathroom to wash up.

Rogue was humming to herself as she exited the bathroom wrapped in her towel. She was headed for her dresser when she realized that she and Emma were not the only beings in the room. Crouched over her bed stood a frozen Remy LeBeau with his hand poised over a white box. His whole attention was on Rogue as he took in every inch of skin that was not covered by the towel.

"Rogue . . . Remy thought he had more time till ye came out . . . désolé," he said quietly still stuck in the same position as if he were afraid to make any sudden movements.

The fact that he seemed genuinely surprised kept Rogue from killing him where he stood. Instead she smiled at him. "It's okay, Remy" she said with a small shrug. Her eyes searched for her long and covering bathrobe. "Just give meh a minute," she told him as she stepped back into the bathroom and reemerged significantly more covered.

Awkward silence settled over them as Remy continued to stare at her. "Uh . . . sorry, chere. Remy wanted to bring you yer outfit." He explained and gestured to the box. Rogue smiled as she crossed the room over to him. Remy leapt away from her as if he was afraid he would do something stupid if he stood too close.

"Ya bought meh an outfit? It's slutty isn't it?" she asked as her hands hovered over the edge of the lid. "If it's not reasonably covered ah can't wear it. The safety of others takes priority over this bet," she told him sternly. All Remy could do was nod silently as he eyed her robe. Rogue chuckled at him. "Ah never thought ah'd see the day when Remy LeBeau was speechless."

Rogue opened the box and the smile fell from her face. She figured it would be bad . . . but a French maid outfit? How did he find one with long sleeves? Halloween was a long time ago.

"Now, who's speechless?" Remy asked as he came to stand next to her. His hands searched knowingly in the box and lifted a black lace thong. "Remy can't wait te see ye dressed, chere." He whispered close to her ear. Rogue felt her face begin to blush as she snatched the underwear from his hand.

"Ah'll get ye back for this Cajun!" she said as she marched with the offensive box in hand towards the bathroom. She had no desire to wear what he had picked out, but a bet is a bet. Besides, just because she had to wear the monstrosity did not mean she had to leave her room she hoped.

"Remy will be back te see ya, chere!" she heard him call through the door.

It took a while for Rogue to put on the complete outfit. She stood in front of her mirror blushing and only she was seeing her reflection. The dress was the typical maid outfit including the black corset that shoved her chest to attention. The skirt was black as well and puffy from the white underskirt she wore underneath. The apron was white, but was a deviation from the typical maid outfit in that it was heart shaped. The black stockings would protect others from her legs. Remy had even included a black garter. The shoes were black stilettos and Rogue had no hope in moving fast in them. Rogue frowned at her reflection.

"No," she said to her reflection as if saying the words would make it all go away.

"Chere," Remy called with laughter in his voice on the other side. Rogue glared and stuck her tongue out at the door and presumably at him on the other side.

"Ah'm not coming out!" Rogue cried. At her statement Remy burst into a fit of laughs.

"Come on out, chere. Remy promises not to laugh," his voice crooned.

Rogue stood in front of the door and took a deep breath before she pulled the door open and came face to face with Remy. His eyes bore into her own and she felt the intensity of his stare and his feelings for her. She knew that he was completely caught up in her eyes since he made no comment on her clothes.

Rogue felt as if she could drown in his eyes. They were breathtakingly beautiful. In that moment something snapped into place and through their eyes they became one being. Remy stepped closer to her with his eyes still locked into place. Rogue barley had enough thought presence to realize he was about to kiss her bear lips.

Turning away Rogue said, "Careful . . . ah don't want ya knocked out. That would ruin yer plans for today." Her voice seemed to shake him out of the trance and he gave her a lopsided grin.

"Ye look good enough to eat, chere." He told her in a husky voice as his eyes roamed all over her body. Rogue felt herself blush and she tugged at the bottom of the skirt in a vain attempt of covering herself more. "Ye hungry?" he asked her. Rogue shook her head adamantly. No way was she leaving her room dressed as she was. Remy's grin widened at her reaction and his hand whipped out and yanked her to him almost painfully fast.

"Remy," Rogue cautioned with her hands skimming along his chest.

"Come on chere . . . it will be fun to shock some of those prudes." Remy said as his thumb made circling motions on her hip. Rogue had to laugh at his statement.

"Well sure sug . . . if ya wanna face Logan's wrath." Rogue said in a soft sensual voice as her arms came up and wrapped themselves around his neck as she pressed herself more fully against him.

"Ye won't let Mr. Wolf hurt Remy will ye?" Remy asked as his hands encircled her back. Rogue swore in her head. He had her there . . . she would stop Logan from turning him in to shish-kabob Remy. But then she smiled and pulled out of his embrace and allowed Remy to get a good look at her. She even did a slow turn. When she came back around he was practically drooling.

"Do ah look sexy?" she practically purred. Remy cleared his throat and nodded while his eyes decided which was better to stare at her legs or her breasts. "Well ah guess we can go to the kitchen . . . just don't get upset when yer not the only one enjoyin' the outfit." Rogue said with a smile. Remy frowned at her statement.

"What do ye mean Rogue?" he asked.

"Well it ain't like yer the only man in the mansion. Ya got upset when Bobby was checkin' meh out the other day. Ah just wanted te make sure you were okay with _all_ the boys seein' meh like this." Rogue explained.

"Non!" he blurted out forcefully. After a few moments of silence Remy seemed to compose the possessive tint to eyes and he gave her a small smile. "Don't worry, Chere, Remy will go and get us some food and bring it back here." He said.

"Well if that's what ya want, sugah." Rogue said trying not to laugh. Normally she would have complained about his possessive behavior, but it was just too cute. Rogue decided she would probably feel much the same if the roles were reversed. He was hers just like she was his.

'_X-men please come to the common room. I have something urgent to discuss with all of you' _the Professor's voice declared in their heads. Rogue frowned as did Remy. There was no time to change. Remy shrugged off his trench coat and draped it over her shoulders. Rogue slipped her hands through the sleeves. So much for getting away with no one seeing the French Maid outfit, Rogue thought as she followed Remy silently out of her room.

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First off, Shadow Hand Zealot: I hope you like the entense eye contact between Rouge and Remy. I hope it met your aproval. So, interesting chapter right? Goota say I love Emma's ghost. She goes from making Rogue's life a mess (litterally) to throwing the overprotective men out of Rogue's room. Rogue just has no luck does she? And Remy . . . he didn't mean to see her coming out of the shower, but he wasn't going to complain . . . apologise profusely yes. I know that a french maid outfit is a little chiche with remy being French . . . but it was just too good to pass up. I love that Rogue manipulate Remy into agreeing for her to stay in the room . . . only to have the Professor summon them all. So, what will all the mutants think when they see Rogue dressed up in a slutty french maid outfit? That scene was supposed to be fun. Next time: what is so urgent that the Professor needs them?


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: I do not own x-men

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IrisWriter : thanks. Only remy could come up with that. I'm happy you enjoyed it.

Shadow Hand Zealot : I'm happy you liked it

spriterx ; thank you

suis. : yeah. Poor Remy doesn't even know he was being manipulated. The plot hum? I will give nothing away.

Valnar : (24) yeah . . . Rogue is going to have to be alert to keep Logan from slicing and dicing Remy. And thank you. I do have a wicked mind and am quite proud of it.

RogueNya : yeah. Only Remy could come up with that one

summergirlforever : thanks. I love Emma too

tfobmv18 : yeah. Poor Rogue asfter she did all that work to convicne Remy to keep the costume a secret.

jadeDino : thanks. I'm happy that you were pleased by the french maid thing. I always coined Remy for the slightly posessive type.

Valnar : (23) aw thanks. Gotta love siblings

* * *

Rogue could feel all eyes boring down upon her as every mutant wondered why she was completely covered up in Remy's trench coat. She was apparently of more interest than whatever the Professor intended to tell them. Most of the chairs were taken when she and Remy arrived. She could see her boyfriend's smile upon seeing this. He dragged them over to it and sat down first. Rogue stood to the side and ignored his gesture to sit on his lap.

The recreation room filled with most of the x-men who were of a certain age. On the couch crowded Jean, Scott, Kitty, Kurt, and even Storm. The Professor sat his chair in front of the large television while Logan leaned to her right against the wall. Rogue was about to join him when suddenly she was falling backwards.

She looked down at Remy with a glare, which only made him smile as his arms looped securely around her waist. Rogue could hear Logan growl beside her. "Non, ye sittin' avec Remy," he whispered in her ear. Rogue knew she could protest and get out of his grasp . . . but she did not want to. So, instead she snuggled more comfortably on him and turned her attention to the Professor.

Hank walked in and headed over to the Professor's side. Bobby and Laura aka X-23 came shortly afterwards. Bobby chose to sit on the floor in front of the couch while Laura leaned against the wall next to her . . . her . . . Logan.

"Good, you are all here. Now, I am certain you are all pondering the reason I have called you hear," the Professor stated. Some people in the audience nodded. "Mr. McCoy, as some of you know, has been working on decoding the documents taken from that warehouse. Bobby and Laura . . . you are new to this issue and I assure you that you will be fully caught up after the meeting. Hank has made a small break through that will take us to Pennsylvania. Apparently there is a sister organization to the one we discovered. At this warehouse they are conducting experiments on mutants, whom we hope to liberate. Hank has gained the exact location of this sight. A group of you will be leaving as soon as you are packed." The Professor explained.

Rogue's heart leap into her throat in anticipation. "Most of you will remain here for obvious reasons. We cannot leave the Institute and students lacking in adequate protection. Those of you staying must keep a careful watch out for anything suspicious. The team leaving for Pennsylvania will consist of Scott, Storm, Kurt, Laura, and Bobby. I have made this decision carefully and hope you will all agree to it. Scott will be the leader of the mission. Now, I suggest you to say your goodbyes and pack . . . you will depart in one hour." He said in a dismissive tone.

"Do we know anything about the other . . . original organization?" Jean asked stealing the words from Rogue's lips.

"No, I am afraid we have made no progress on that front. Hopefully this will lead us to the other organization." Hank answered. When he was finished talking Scott stood from his seat.

"Alright everyone lets go get ready," he announced enthusiastically. Rogue rose from her seat and yelped as Remy pinched her butt.

"Rogue, why are you wearing Remy's trench coat?" Jean asked. Rogue turned to glare at the red head.

"Yeah . . . it's like a little weird for like a fashion statement," Kitty added. Rogue forced her mind to unpleasant memories to try and keep the blush away from her cheeks.

"Ah like it that's all," she snapped. Logan at this time came towards them as Remy tried to tug her away from the forming mob. Did these people have 'possibly embracing situation' radar or something? Most of the time they ignored her so why . . . Jean. "Did ya go inta mah head!?" Rogue snarled at the redhead. Jean gave her a confused innocent look, but Rogue was not buying it.

"No, Rogue of course not . . . is there something you need to tell us?" she asked.

"Why do you reek of embarrassment, Stripes?" Logan demanded with a growl.

"Remy t'inks he and his chere have some things to do," Remy mumbled and began pulling Rogue along. They did not get far because Logan grabbed Remy by his shirt and lifted him clear off the ground.

"Logan! Put. Him. Down," Rogue demanded dangerously. This was getting out of hand. "And ta the rest of ya, back off!" she instructed. When she turned back Logan has reluctantly dropped Remy to the ground. Her fellow southerner was picking himself up with sigh.

"Rogue, if you are hiding something critical from the te-" Scott started, but stopped mid-word at the glare he earned from Rogue.

"It ain't a big deal," Rogue said sternly to everyone in the room. It seemed that the Professor, Hank, Bobby, Storm, and Laura had fled the room.

"Then vy are you hiding? Ve are your family, Rogue," Kurt said with a concerned frown. Rogue sighed and turned to Remy.

"Ya are so playin' for this Cajun," she said. Rogue unbuttoned the trench coat and let it slide off her shoulders.

Silence . . . complete and utter silence. Rogue kept a watchful eye on Logan as he stared in shock. His expression was mirrored throughout the room. Rogue edged closer to her soon to be dead boyfriend both to protect him and use his support against the onslaught that was about to occur at any second.

The whole room began yelling at once at the two southerners and Logan merely growled and popped out his claws. Remy LeBeau would be dead if it were not for the fact that he was standing so close to Rogue.

"This is outrageous!" Scott yelled.

"Rogue . . . like Halloween was like months ago!" Kitty exclaimed horrified by Rogue's sense of fashion.

"My eyes!" Kurt cried out before teleporting away . . . to probably wash his eyes out with soap Rogue guessed.

"Rogue can you explain your clothes?" Jean asked calmly.

"Chere . . . for what it's worth . . . désolé," Remy whispered and placed his arms on both her shoulders. Rogue sighed. It was not really his fault.

"It's called a bet Jeanie," Rogue said softly knowing the redhead hated the name. Various blank faces blinked in unison at her. Rogue looked up and over her shoulder at her boyfriend. "Maybe ya should take it away sug . . . since ya caused all this." She said.

"Remy and Rogue had a bet. Rogue lost and dat explains de costume. Now, if ye will excuse us . . .we have plans," Remy declared and tried to leave again.

"So you are like dressed as a French maid because of . . . like a bet?" Kitty asked in true confusion. She seemed less appalled now that she knew Rogue's sense of fashion had not taken a turn for the worst.

"Why else would ah wear this ridiculous get up? Ah lost a bet and have to do what Remy wants for the day." Rogue said in exasperation.

"Don't you feel . . . degraded wearing that?" Jean asked. Rogue began bubbling in anger.

"No, ah don't. What ah wear for mah man is no concern of yers. We were tryin' ta keep this private and between us. That was why ah was wearin' the coat. Ah have no problem wearing anythin' or nothin' for Remy, so please keep yer opinions to yerself," Rogue said in a slow and tense voice. She took a deep breath and collected the coat, but did not bother to put it on. That would send the wrong signal. "Oh, and Jeanie . . . remember ah have some of yer memories up here," she said pointing to her head. "Ah wouldn't get all prudish on meh if ah were you . . . at least a French maid outfit is _normal_." She said and yanked Remy away and towards the door.

"Hey!" Jean called in embarrassment as Rogue slammed the door shut.

Rogue marched with anger and pulled a silent Remy along behind her. She did not care if she was pulling to hard or that they passed several of the students of the way to her room. When she got inside she flung Remy inside and slammed the door shut. The bang echoed throughout the dorms clearly warning all not to even approach the Rogue.

"Chere?" Remy said clearly afraid her anger was directed towards him. Rogue was not all that surprised by the rough treatment she just gave him. She turned and looked deep into his eyes and the anger left her body immediately.

"Ah'm sorry Remy . . . ah didn't mean ta be so rough," she apologized. He closed the distance between them and wrapped her in a comforting embrace. Rogue buried her face in his chest and listened to the quick beat of his heart. They stayed like that until his heart slowed to a normal pace.

"Merci," he whispered into her hair. Rogue lifted her face and stared into his eyes.

"For what, Swamp rat?" she asked affectionately.

"For stickin' up for Remy back der . . . no one has ever done dat before. Ye didn't . . . feel what Jean suggested . . . did ye?" he asked concerned. Rogue snorted.

"It's a French maid costume nothin' degrading about it. It's just a typical male fantasy. Jean once wore an ah love Lucy outfit for Duncan . . . apparently he was really turned on by Lucy . . . probably why he dated her in the first place . . . ya know the red hair." Rogue said and Remy laughed at this and his earlier worry evaporated. "And ah will always stick up for ya . . . ah meant what ah said," she said. Remy gave her a huge grin as his hands slipped down to her waist.

"Even de part about wearin' nothin' for Remy?" he asked as one hand trailed up and down her side making Rogue tremble. She was a little ticklish there.

Rogue winked at him and said, "Sure sug if yer real good." Remy's mouth dropped open, but he quickly recovered.

"Ye ready ta get out of dat outfit? Remy has somethin' else for ya te wear . . . it's not another costume Remy promises." He said and headed towards her balcony. But at the last minute he doubled back and kissed her fully on her lips. The sensation lasted all of four seconds before Remy fell to his knees. Rogue was surprised that he was still conscious after such a prolonged contact. But she was too worried to dwell on the fact for too long.

"Qu'est-ce qui tu penser!" (what were you thinking?) she demanded as she crouched down in front of him. Remy looked up at her with a pleased smile. "Tu es un idiot," she said sternly. "Don't scare Rogue like dat!" she said continuing to chastise him. She was too concerned for him to deal with the new memories he had given her. Rogue pushed them to the back of her mind. All though one thought came in clear in her mind despite her efforts to keep all of them away. It warmed her heart and made her feel whole like she had never been before.

"Chere . . . you are very sexy when you talk with my voice," he said sounding tired, but pleased.

"Ye could have been hurt," she said in a softer voice.

"Remy wanted ta try somethin' . . . Remy t'inks dat ye are too focused on yer powers. Remy caught ye by surprise and it took ye a while te absorb Remy." He said with a smile. Rogue pondered his words. They made sense in a way, but how do you not focus on something that was the forefront of your thoughts all the time?

"Look . . . dat's just a theory. Promise Rogue ye won't do dat again, d'accord?" she said sternly. The thought of something bad happening to him was unbearable.

"D'accord, chere" he agreed reluctantly.

"Rogue will talk te de Professor about dis . . . when things calm down a bit." Rogue promised to both him a herself. Remy smile and his gloved hand reached up to stroke her face.

"Rogue . . . je t'aime," he told her (I love you). Tears welled up in her eyes as he voiced the one thought he gave her inside her head.

"Remy, je t'aime aussi," she said and leaped into his arms crying for joy. Remy planted kisses on her head and Rogue kissed his chest. Things got heated u quickly as their hands groped one another freely and without fear.

* * *

First, did you notice the chapter was longer? If no body has any objections I am going to continue with this length. I just love putting Rogue in awkward positions (I know evil right?). So, there is a whole second branch to the evil mutant kidnappers/experimenters. What does this mean? What will happen to the team going to PA? And poor Rogue. I'll let you make up your own mind if Jean looked inside Rogue's mind or not. I will not tell you either way . . . so you decide. I love everyone's reaction . . . especially Kurt and Kitty. And i know the whole 'I Love Lucy' thing is a little weird, but it sort of popped into my head and I liked it too much not to use it (yes I know my mind is a strange place). Well it seems that Remy has a idea on how for Rogue to work on gaining control. And they told eachother that they loved eachother. I hope it didn't feel too soon . . . I have planned to put it in later, but it just felt like the right moment. Well please review and tell me what you think!


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: I do not own X-men

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kataragirl11 : thank you

The Bittersweet End : I'm glad that the I love Lucy part was funny. I wasn't too sure about it. Sorry about the whole grounded from the computer. That sucks.

Red red red ribbon : thank you

Shadow Hand Zealot : We'll have to wait and see what comes out of PA

ChamberlinofMusic : I'm happy to hear it. I hope you feel better. Being sick sucks.

Temari's Angle : thanks. I'm jeeping the logner length. Gotta love a little fighting between Jean and Rogue

IrisWriter : thanks. You;ll find out what's happening in the near future. I know that's vague . . . sorry : )

Ondjage : hum. I probably would too.

Valnar : I love awkward situtation too. Probably why I'm always throwing Rogue into them. Poor Kurt . . . he might actuall use drain cleaner. I'm happy that Rogue came out more playful. thank you.

Wanda W : (25) Yeah Duncan was a little strange. Yeah, Jean could lighten up a bit. Poor Kurt. A brother or father figure for that matter should never see that. Thanks. I'm going to keep the length.

Wanda W : (24) Gotta love Emma. She and Rogue are going to be in more harmony from now on. Yeah this chapter was full of ironic and humorous moments with the bathroom secene to the french maid outfit.

RogueNya : glad to hear it. I'm trying not to rush them.

jadeDino : thank you. I have seen the whole "slower aobsortion" thing. so I take no credit there. I plan on doing it a little differently though.

suis. : i like that line to. Its kind of hard to define what Logan is to her . . . she's his clone so . . . that would be an awkward halmark card. Rogue does have a cool power.

tfobmv18 : thanks. yeah poor Kurt.

* * *

It had been an hour since Rouge had said good bye the x-men leaving for their Pennsylvania trip. When she got back to her room from seeing them off there was a white box waiting for her on her bed next to a deep red rose and an envelope. Rogue instantly read the letter from her boyfriend requesting her company in an hour in a half. She had peeked into the box and had regretted it instantly. He had been honest when he promised it was not another costume, but this outfit was probably just as bad. Rogue then set about doing her hair and all things that accompanied dressing up. So far all Remy wanted to do on his day was play dress up. Of course . . . they had just professed their love to each other.

Rouge felt eager and excited instead of annoyed as she opened the box and lifted the dark red dress out. She had to admit it was stunning as she shimmied into the thing. It was made of a sheer fabric with a silk underlining. The dress dipped low down her chest exposing more cleavage than she was usually comfortable with. However, it was perfectly safe because the sheer layer covered the exposed area letting her be seen without posing a danger. It had thin straps and fit her body snug and tight. The dress ended a good four inches above her knee. Rogue wore skin colored stocking with the dress and Remy had selected a pair of gorgeous black stilettos that had her toes peeking out. Rouge fished out a pair of long black opera gloves and put them on to protect her arms. Looking in the mirror, Rogue found it hard to even recognize herself.

She looked . . . well like she had just stepped out of a fashion magazine. She smiled to her reflection marveling in the fact that her boyfriend had excellent taste. It was still early in the day . . . just past noon. Her heart began pounding wildly in her chest when she heard a knock on her door. They had only been apart for little over an hour and she was already eager to be by his side again. When she flung the door open the smile fell from her face.

"Oh . . . Kitty," she said trying not to sound disappointed not that she did not love her best friend. Rogue paused marveling over a new revelation. When had she turned into _that_ girl? She had become the girl who could not stand to be away from her boyfriend. At least she was not at the stage where she would bring him up randomly in conversation every five minutes.

"Oh my gosh . . . you look amazing Rogue," she exclaimed clearly in approval. "Wait! You aren't like leaving the Institute are you?" she demanded.

"No, ah'm not," she replied. There was no way Remy would take her away from the safety of the mansion. He was becoming just as overly protective as the other men in her life. "Besides, ah can't just stay here forever. At some point ah'll have ta stop hiddin' from the monsters in the closet." Rogue explained.

"Yeah . . . I guess you're right. I don't like the idea of you like leaving until this thing is like solved though." Kitty said. "So . . . are you dressed up for Remy?" Kitty asked with a broad smile. Rogue was wondering why Kitty had come knocking on her door. Whatever it was Rogue could tell the valley girl had decided it could wait.

"Oui, chere is." The man in question said coming from Rogue's right. Both girls jumped having not seen or heard him approach. Rogue turned to Remy feeling suddenly whole. He looked wonderful in black slacks and a long-sleeved dark blue blouse that was not buttoned up all the way and thankfully tieless, which was good. If he had shown up like that she would have had to make fun of him. Somehow he made even stuffy dress clothes look sexy though. In his hand were four more roses of the same blood red color of the first. Rogue took the flowers blushing at the attention.

"Oh gosh! That is like so romantic! Well I'm going to let you two love birds enjoy your day. Oh and Remy, make Rouge do something unusual for me . . . the girl needs to like live a little," Kitty said and left after offering the two a farewell wave.

With Kitty gone, the sexual tension between the two rose considerably. Rogue felt herself blushing as Remy gave her a slow look over. He gazed at her with an intensity that made her feel almost as if his fingers had trailed along her body and not just his lovely demon eyes.

"Chere," he purred and stepped forward to place his hand on the small of her back.

Fighting the urge to push him into her room and say screw his plans, Rogue cleared her throat as if to banish her naughty thoughts. "Well, Cajun, ya got meh all dressed up . . . so now what?" she asked.

"Hum . . . now what indeed," he said in a husky voice. Apparently Rogue was not the only one considering forgoing . . . whatever they were going to do in favor of some experimenting. Suddenly he seemed to shake himself from the trance he had been in because Remy gave her a smile and locked onto her eyes.

Rouge pulled herself out of his arms enjoying the pout he gave. "Let meh put these in water," she said before heading into her room. She put the four flowers with the fifth on her nightstand before returning to Remy's side.

"You look beautiful, chere," he said and twirled a lock of her hair around his index finger.

"Ah better have not dressed up for nothin' Swamp rat," she said playfully. A wicked smile played at the corners of Remy's mouth.

"Now, now, Rogue. None of dat _Swamp rat_ stuff pour aujourd'hui. Remy t'ink ye should call him . . . hum . . ." he said trailing off and bringing his free hand to stroke his chin in a pseudo-pondering way. Rogue knew he was just making her sweat it out.

"Okay hum . . . what are we doing?" she asked again smiling for ear to ear. Remy chuckled before swiftly pushing her against the wall. His lips hovered over hers and his body flush against hers held Rogue in place. His hands on his hips radiated heat . . . almost too hot through her clothes.

"Don't be a smart ass," he whispered. Rogue could feel the warmth of his breath as he spoke. "Naughty girl," he said as if the idea delighted him. Rogue moved her eyes upwards seeking out his own. She could see a jumble of emotions in their fiery depths. There was humor, lust, and love all battling for dominance.

"Careful," she warned genuinely. She did not want to have to cart his ass to the clinic.

"Careful, Master." he said corrected snickering. Rogue's jaw dropped . . . was he actually going to make her call him that? What . . . did he think she was a genie? He moved even closer to prove his seriousness.

"Careful, _Master_." she said through gritted teeth. He moved back a little visibly pleased with himself. Rogue growled . . . if he thought he was going to hear her say that again he was out of his mind. She did not have to call him that if she kept silent. Of course Remy did love a challenge and Rogue knew she had no chance again him. He was too reckless and knew her better than she knew herself.

Remy laughed before moving away and grabbing her hand and pulling her forward in the direction towards the main area of the mansion. "Chere, Remy don't want you te call him Master . . . he just wanted te teach that sharp tongue of yers a lesson." He explained and tucked her arm in the crook of his.

"Do you . . . hate meh callin' ya that?" she asked. He knew she was referring to her nickname for him.

He laughed before answering, "Non, Remy don't mind. Remy was just messin' with you, chere." He said. Rogue smiled and snuggled herself more against his arm.

As they were walking, Rogue and Remy passed Wolverine who growled at the sight of the two mumbling about needing a drink. Rogue was surprise he let it go at that and continued on his way. Remy obviously had been expecting something more because the second they passed Logan a good safe distance he released his held breath. Rogue laughed at him and Remy gave her a fake hurt look before grinning back at her. When they reached the stairs Rogue spotted Jean emerging from the kitchen.

Jean Grey moved like lightening when she was trying to avoid someone. The second she spotted Rogue, the red head blushed wildly before walking briskly in the direction to the Professor's office. Her retreat gave Rogue a bit of pride while at the same time striking a cord with her conscious. Sighing, Rogue figured she would need to apologize to her teammate . . . after all . . . Jean had probably been grilled for answers after she left.

"You okay, chere?" Remy asked as they reached the last step. Rogue gave him what she hoped looked like a convincing smile.

"Nothin' to worry over," she assured. He hesitated while fixing her with a stern look. When had he learned how to call her bullshit? "Should ah apologize ta Jean?" she asked.

"Chere . . . if dats what you fell you need te do," he said and stroked her cheek with his gloved hand. Rogue nodded mutely.

Remy lead her towards the rec-room and Rogue gave him a questioningly look. He smirked before opening the door and ushering her inside. Rogue had been a little surprised at what she saw. The fire was going and it appeared that he had a fondue set by the fire. She could see strawberries and other edibles on a tray. Jamie bounded up from the couch and sprinted towards them.

"I did everything exactly how you wanted!" the young boy exclaimed.

"Good," Remy said and pulled a pair of twenties from his back pocket. Jamie's eyes widened and Rogue could see him practically drooling over the money. Remy placed one bill in the boy's eager hands before tucking its mate back in his pocket. "You will get de other when you've completed yer job." Remy explained.

"I'm on it. If anyone approaches the rec-room my multiple is to going distract them by asking about the birds and bees and such. Did you get the game?" he asked.

"Oui, Bloody Death will arrive at de mansion in a week," Remy replied. Jamie smiled before rushing out of the room. Rogue stood trying to process the strange exchange.

"Corruptin' children ah see," she said. Although she figured she would never be able to look at Jamie as she sweet innocent boy again.

"Dat boy ain't a child. He just conned Remy out of a lot of money." He explained before pulling her towards the fireplace.

Rogue took a seat next to him her mouth watering at the smell of melted chocolate. She was happy that Remy had won the bet. She had intentions of making him clean things . . . his ideas were much better. Of course, the day was nowhere near over. Remy picked up a strawberry and dipped it into the chocolate before presenting it to her.

Rogue hesitated before taking a bite. It was delicious. She loved chocolate covered strawberries. Rogue wondered how he knew since she had never told him.

"Chere, you got some chocolate on yer face," he said and leaned forward to wipe it away. However, at the last moment he replaced his reaching fingers with his lips and sucked away the chocolate. Rogue gasped in surprise and pushed him back.

She was shocked that he was completely fine . . . in fact she had barely absorbed him at all. Maybe there was something to his theory after all. Then she was angry. "Ah though ya weren't gonna do that again!" she yelled. He at least was smart enough to look apologetic.

"Its yer fault, chere. Yer just too tempting," he said. "Mais, it worked . . . you hardly even absorb Remy at all."

"Yer crazy, Cajun. Ah don't want to hurt ya," she said. Her anger was already dying away and disappeared all together when he took her hand in his.

"You won't," he said full of confidence. "Forgive moi?" he asked. Rogue sighed before nodding. "Bon, den do you want to watch Sweet Home Alabama? No one but Remy will know," he said. Rogue's jaw actually dropped. She loved that movie, but it was a well kept secret. No one knew, not even Kitty. She was actually embarrassed to like such a chick flick.

"How do ya know ah love that movie?" she demanded and planted her fists on her hips . . . which was an awkward thing to do sitting down.

"Before Remy joined de x-men he liked te watch over ye, chere," he explained as he rose from his seat to put in the movie, which he had hidden behind the large television. Rogue rolled her eyes. He was such a stalker . . . a sweet stalker.

"Why are ya being so nice today? Ya could have meh do anything ya want and instead you're doin' all these nice things for meh," she stated.

"Remy just wants te spend de day with you, Rogue. If you're happy den Remy's happy," he explained and then moved back to her side.

* * *

Okay. Sorry this took so long. This is the longest I have ever gone between updates. I was smacked with the writer's block stick. I know about where I was going, but just could not fill in all the details. Also I have been runnig around like carzy. Going away to the Dominican republic in a week so I'm getting ready for that. On to the chapter. What do you thinK? I love that remy gets her to call him Master. That's what rogue gets for being a smart ass. Poor Jean . . . I almost feel bad. After all Rogue made that comment in front of Kitty . . . What do you think of Jamie? Genious plan of Remy's to ensure that he and Rogue get alone time. He's sweet ain't he? Sorry, I could not resit the whole chiched "something on yer face" scene. I happen to think chiche is cute sometimes. I picked Sweet Home Alabama (which I don't own . . . so disclaimer and such) becuase its a southern movie, which I figured Rogue would enojy. also is very much a chick flick (one of my favs). Okay next chapter should finish up remy's day, and then we will hear from the x-men in PA. Please reivew!


	27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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The Bittersweet End : thanks. Yes Emma will be comming up later. Now she's just laying low.

coup fatal : thanks. Happy to hear you like it so far.

jadeDino ; thanks. Yeha Remy always seemed like a romantic to me too under the whole player thing.

tfobmv18 : thank you

kataragirl11 : thanks. They needed some alone time. Things won't always be peaceful

IrisWriter : yeah. He's good at making Rogue mad, but he's also good a making her laugh. thanks

RogueNya : yeah it is sweet/unnerving. I personally agree about Jean. she always annoyed me.

* * *

Rogue sighed with contentment her body curled up against Remy's in her room. The day had been wonderful, but it was nearing to a close. They had watched movies and ate junk food and talked. There had even been an intense make out session on the couch. Now they were lying on her bed resting comfortably against each other. Rogue was happy to be back in normal clothes . . . she had on tight black sweatpants and a long-sleeved tee-shirt with some band's name she did not know on the front. It was Remy's shirt, which she had stolen from him a few days ago. He apparently liked the idea that she slept in his shirt.

"Chere," he said.

"Ummm," Rogue mumbled nuzzling her nose against his chest. She heard him swallow slowly and chuckled.

"You ready?" he asked. Rogue frowned and tipped her head upwards to see his face.

"For what?" she asked.

"Well it be snowin'," he stated as if that answered her question.

"Okay . . . great for the freakishly cold New York weather," she said clearly not understanding his bazaar statement.

"Well, we are goin' te go play in de snow, chere" he said and sat up coincidently dropping Rogue back onto the bed with a thud. If she had not been so surprised she would have caught herself.

"Ah ain't going out in the snow ya crazy Cajun! It's freezin' and it's like nearly ten at night. In case ya forgot we are _southerners_ . . . meanin' we don't go out in the snow!" She explained slightly annoyed.

He chuckled as he stood up and crossed his arms over his chest. That was smart of him moving out of reach from her legs and arms. "Remy didn't forget. Come on it will be fun, chere. We can make a snowman." He said.

"Remy LeBeau ah am not goin' outside in the snow. Not happenin' so forget it." She said in a determined voice. His eyes shifted at her statement and took on a spark of mischief and challenge. Rogue rolled on her side away from him intent on getting to the safety of the other side of the bed when his arm grabbed hers and pulled her towards him.

Rogue managed to whack Remy good up the side of his head before he hoisted her over his shoulder. It was an embarrassing position so Rogue wiggled and kicked her feet, but he only dug is hand tighter on her upper thigh in response.

"Dat was not nice, chere. You shouldn't hit Remy like dat." He said in a soft growl, but Rogue knew he was not really mad . . . after all now his thumb was caressing her thigh.

"Ya deserve it ya stupid Cajun! Put meh down! Girlfriend abuse, girlfriend abuse!" she shriek almost borderline giggles. She was acting completely out of character, and Rogue loved it. Remy brought out the best in her.

"Non, you are goin' outside, Rogue. No gettin' around it . . . besides its still mon temps (my time)" he explained. Remy carried her over to her closet and yanked the door open.

"Who said ye could go in mah closet?" she demanded. He hushed her as he pulled something out. Rogue had to duck her head around his arm to see that he had taken out her heavy winter jacket. He even grabbed a pair of winter gloves and a black hat that she never wore. She thought about telling him she was not wearing that hat, but decided postpone that fight till later. With Remy it was always better to fight when you absolutely had to. If he knew she was going to be difficult he would ensure she wore the stupid thing.

"Dis will be fun, chere. You need a little fun." He said and began leaving her room. Rogue prayed that they would not run into anyone with him carrying her over his shoulder. Rogue placed her elbows on his back and propped her head up on her palms. It was an awkward position, but it at least made her appear annoyed. She had the worst kind of luck, which meant that they _would_ run into someone.

"Good job, Gambit!" Jubilee called as they passed her.

"Ah'm not kissin' ya for a week!" Rogue growled.

Remy's only response as he began to descend the stairs with her was, "Whatever you say, chere. You'll be beggin' dis Cajun for a kiss in no time." Rogue rolled her eyes like he was that irresistible. She could control her urges . . . provided that she did not look into his eyes . . . or smell his wonderful scent . . . or hear his voice . . . okay so maybe she couldn't resist him.

"Ah ain't playin' in the snow!" Rogue shrieked as Remy carefully put her on the ground.

Once she was back on her feet a struggle ensued. It consisted of Rogue trying to run away and Remy holding her in place while he prepared her for the snow. In no time Rogue was wearing the winter jacket, heavy gloves over the thin ones she had on earlier and the stupid hat. During the whole fight Remy laughed till he was braced on his knees gasping for air as Rogue scowled at him.

"Ah ain't wearin' this hat!" she yelled before yanking it off and throwing it as far as she could in the snow. Remy rose from her doubled over position still chuckling.

"You messed up yer hair chere," he chuckled. Before Rogue could fix the mess that was her hair Remy closed the distance between them and was gently straightening her tangled locks. Rogue's heart began pounding in her chest as she gazed up into his eyes. Unconsciously, she licked her lips. Yeah, Rogue was a fort of strength alright.

"Alright, Remy build meh a snowman," she said trying to break his spell over her.

"Humm?" he muttered while pulling her against him and running his gloved fingers through her hair. After a minute he brought one gloved hand to his lips and took the material in his teeth before yanking it off. Rogue shivered as his bare hands slowly ran all through her hair. It was by far the most intimate thing they had ever done . . . somehow this seeming simple act spoke volumes of love.

"Remy," Rogue whispered. She glanced up into his eyes as he bent forward and placed s kiss on the top of her hair. When he pulled back a wicked smile played on his lips. Rogue had barely began to shift her weight to spring back when he pushed her back. Rogue landed completely horizontal in the snow.

"Cajun!" she screamed before grabbing a mound of snow at her side and made a quick snowball. It landed dead center on his retreating head.

"Dats it! Dis means war chere!" he called back and crouched down to make a snowball of his own. However, Rogue had already made another and it smashed perfectly on his back molding to his coat. Glancing at the Mansion, Rogue noticed that their play fight had gained some attentions. At least half the residents were watching with astonished and curious expressions. Rogue fell backwards as a snowball thrown by her boyfriend landed on her right shoulder. He only response was to laugh and move to make another. Remy was right this was fun. It was a perfect end to a perfect day. Both enjoying the calm before the storm . . . a storm that would threaten everything.

* * *

Okay. I had to do one last chapter for Rogue and Remy's day together. I lhope you enjoyed the fluff . . . cuz its going to get serious soon. Not a whole lot to comment on. I liked Remy playing with her hair. There is something reallu nice about a guy running their fingers through your hair. I know the chapter was really really short. But I'm going on vacation tomorrow! So I won't be able to update for a while. I wanted to post this before I left. Well I hope you enjoyed it! Review please!


	28. Chapter 28

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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Wanda W : (27) you're right. If its crazy all the time it would be impossible to form a solid bond. I'm happy the pacing it coming out well

Wanda W : (26) I agree. I personally don't feel bad for Jean either.

ChamberlinofMusic : thanks. I'm happy the date came out good

mylove24 : thanks

Red red red ribbon : thank you

kataragirl11 : thanks.

tfobmv18 : thank you

RogueNya : thanks I did.

spriterx " thanks

jadeDino : me too. T

hank you Valnar : the forshadowing part? I like her acting like a kid too. Thanks. IrisWriter : sorry. At least I did not leave it in a cliffie. Thanks.

* * *

It was dark and rainy day with luminous clouds in the sky. A small brick building stood in contrast against the large evergreen trees in the background. From its smoke stacks black clouds poured out making the air think with chemical fumes. It was hardly seemed like the site of a secret lab experimenting on mutants. It was hard to believe . . . too bad Laura had already confirmed it to be true.

Kurt stood solemnly at the top of the hill overlooking the sight. His tail swished back and forth anxiously. They had to free those mutants. No one deserved to be treated like lab animals. His heart filled with compassion for those captive. However, at the same time he had a selfish reason to want and bring these people down. These monsters were after his sister. They wanted to strap her down and experiment on her. The mere thought made his stomach turn.

"Kurt, are you up for this?" Scott demanded behind him with a stern voice. Kurt turned sideways to glare at his leader. Storm was giving him a sympathetic face while Laura was looking firmly at her shoes as if they offended her.

"Ja," he replied simply. He knew the plan and his role in it perfectly. Get all the mutants out while Laura retrieved information and blew up their base. Scott and Bobby would provide the distraction and Storm would wait for the freed mutants and offer support when needed. With any luck they would be home for breakfast in the morning.

Scott stared at him for a minute more before nodding. Kurt knew he was thrown off by his serious attitude. Anything involving his family usually made Kurt turned a little fierce and unsocial at the least. Rogue had been through so much . . . for once he wanted to be a good brother and protect her. He would crack jokes and laugh later when this was all over.

"Alright, people you know what to do," Scott said firmly. Laura gave one last glance at her team before slipping away quickly to infiltrate the building.

"This is so awesome!" Bobby exclaimed earning a glare from the rest of the x-men.

"Bobby, I need you to focus!" Scott reprimanded. "Nightcrawler, you're up." Kurt nodded before teleporting at the set location along the side of the building. From the plan of the layout retrieved by Laura he knew it would take him near the stairs to the lower levels where they kept the mutants. With another bust of his power he was on the other side. He wasted no time before teleporting again, not even bothering to stop and examine his surroundings.

Kurt was now in what appeared to be a large examination room. He glances around with a feel of dread pooling uneasy at the pit of his stomach. No one is around, which is a miracle. He quietly moves over to a door in the back. It was kept locked by a security number combination pad. Kurt listens intently before teleporting to the other side.

It takes a few seconds for his view to clear and when it does he gasps despite being warned earlier. There were so many cells containing mutants. The entire front of each cell was open with red beams of light forming bars. It was brand new technology . . . something supposedly in the infant stage of production. However, here they were up and running like it was a common every day thing for cells to be equipped with power negator bars. Thankfully in her hours of recon, Laura had learned the pass code to unlock the cells. Several mutants upon seeing him crowded the edge of the cells.

"Let us out!" one florescent scaled covered woman shrieked.

"Please! We're like you!" a man with flaming hair pleaded. It became loud quickly as the pleas fell on Kurt's ear.

"I vil help you," he promised as he moved towards the closest cell and punched in the unlock code. An explosion shook the foundation making Kurt stumble. He had little time if Scott and Bobby were making a big scene now.

* * *

The mansion was bustling about in a frenzied crazy fashion. People were clearing out space in the common room for row after row of cots. A small team was prepping in the clinic for a rush of patients. Several residents were in the kitchen putting together as much food as possible. Rogue was on kitchen duty cooking chicken noodle soup while Cassie silently made lemonade, and Tabitha was making ham and cheese sandwiches.

The mission had gone off with little problem. All the mutants had been safely rescued and the lab had been blown up to prevent future mutants from being subjected to the same horror. Rogue felt an immense feeling of relief. They knew the other half of the organization was still up and running in perfect order, however, knowing they had finally done _something_ felt amazing.

No one on the team was hurt, and now sixteen mutants had their freedom back . . . liberty to return to their lives. All of the captives had apparently agreed to return to the mansion for a while. Rogue turned the heat down on the soup. They would be arriving shortly at the mansion.

"Is this enough sandwiches?" Tabitha asked sounding bored. Rogue sighed and gave a quick nod. "Great, then I'm out of here," the blond said before disappearing out of the kitchen. Rogue looked over to Cassie who was making a second pitcher of lemonade.

"Miss Rogue," Cassie said in a soft voice. The small frail girl looked nervous and afraid. Her murky stared at her intently.

"What is it sugah?" she asked while moving to finish up the sandwiches. They could really use more, and if Tabitha wanted to be elsewhere then that was fine.

"You remember what I told you right?" she asked cautiously.

"Yeah . . . yeah ah do," Rogue said. She wanted to reassure the girl. Rogue knew that knowing the future was a futile thing. If something bad was going to happen then it was simply meant to be. Irene saw the future and it never did Rogue any good.

"I would really like for you to be okay. You're a great teacher Miss Rogue . . . please don't . . . just be careful . . . okay?" the longhaired blonde asked with a strained face.

"Ah always am," Rogue said willing it to be true. Cassie nodded and then looked expectantly at the door sighing.

Just then Kitty came running through the door and in her excitement tripped and knocked over the second pitcher of lemonade to the floor with a loud crash of glass. Rogue was instantly moving to help her friend, but her skid finally came to a stop . . . in the middle of the prep table.

"Oh my gosh . . . like I am so sorry," Kitty said with wide eyes as she moved till she was no longer phasing through the table.

"No worries. I made a second pitcher. I'll be back with a pan, broom, and first aid kit," Cassie said before quickly exiting the room.

"First aid kit? But no one's hurt," Kitty pointed out.

Rogue sighed audibly, "Kit, what had ya runnin' in here like you just caught the juiciest gossip?" Kitty gave a sharp gasp and then a small yelp of excitement.

"How did you know I have like gossip? Okay, so the captured mutants arrived. I was like there to help them out and stuff. Guess who is like with them? Piotr! I mean that's like bad that he was captured and experimented on and all that, but . . . I'm happy to see him again. You remember that I had the biggest crush on him when we like met right? So I like need your help," Kitty said so fast Rogue wondered if even Pietro could keep up.

"Uh . . . okay all ah got from that was Piotr, crush, and help . . . Kit ya need to take a deep breath and try again." Rogue explained.

Kitty took a deep breath before restating everything at half speed. "Okay . . . like Piotr is one of the rescued mutants. I like him, but I don't know how to talk to him. So, let me like help you bring some of the food down. Remy's there with him and you like date him and I'm like your best friend . . . so then I can like talk to him without it being awkward. So, will you help me?" Kitty asked and placed her hands firmly on her hips giving a stern unyielding stare. That was it . . . the valley girl was spending way too much time with her.

The kitchen door swung open and Cassie re-entered. She plopped the first aid kit on the counter and began to clean up the glass shards. Rogue quickly crossed over to her and took the broom and dust pan away.

"Ah ain't havin' ya cut yer hands on this," Rogue said as she began cleaning up the mess. Cassie sighed softly before moving to open the first aid kit, which did not go unnoticed by Rogue. She tried to heed the warning, but despite her precaution a shard stuck to her thin silk gloves instantly slicing her palm. Rogue hissed in pain.

Cassie was at her side with the tweezers pulling the shard out. "Take off your gloves. Don't worry, I don't see you absorbing anyone," the seer assured. Rogue complied and winced as the material brushed against her bleeding skin.

"Rogue, are you like okay?" Kitty asked.

"Just fahne," Rogue hissed as Cassie began attacking the cut with a gaze and then alcohol wipes.

"Why didn't you stop her? You knew this was going to like happen?" Kitty snapped.

"Kit, knock it off. Ah knew ah was goin' ta probably get cut. Better meh than her. Ya know her powers don't work like that." Rogue said in exasperation. Cassie was frowning while doing an excellent job patching Rogue up.

"I wish I had better control . . . I'm working with the Professor," Cassie said sounding on the verge of tears. Rogue shot and angry glare over her should over at Kitty who looked apologetic.

"I'm sorry Cassie . . . I know you don't have complete control over your visions yet . . . I'm sorry. I know you would have done something if you could. Forgive me?" Kitty asked. "Have you had any progress with the Professor on communicating what you see?"

"Not much, you're all fixed . . . I don't see it being a problem." Cassie said and stood. Rogue could tell Kitty's apology had lifted the girl's spirits immensely. It had to be a difficult burden seeing horrible things and having no real success communicating to others what was about to transpire.

"Thanks, Cassie," Rogue said and examined the bandage. She would have to go gloveless for a little while.

"Miss Kitty . . . whatever you do don't serve him," Cassie warned before leaving the kitchen.

"Serve who? Ugh! I like wish she could be specific. Anyways . . . I like guess you need my help now with the food right?" Kitty asked with sparkling eyes.

"Yeah, let's go feed these poor people and ya can flirt with yer Russian," Rogue said.

* * *

Okay. I was not too happy with this chapter when it was all said and done. I blame it on the bad case of writter's block I had. Writting from Kurt's pov is not something I do well. I know he was a little out of his usual character, and that was on purpose. I mean he can be serious . . . especially given the circumstances. I probably could have extended the scene with him, but it was difficult to write in his pov. I loved Cassie and Kitty in the chapter. They were the only redeaming things. Oh, for those of you who know the story of Cassandra from the greek myths out Cassie is loosely based on her. If you don't well . . . Cassandra had the sight but was cursed by Apollo so that no one would believe her visions. Here, Cassie can see the future, but cannot articulate a porper warning. It always comes out vague and cryptic. Kitty getting goffy over Piotr is cute. I told you she would have a new love interest. Well please review. I promise the next chapter will be better.


	29. Chapter 29

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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ChamberlinofMusic : I'm glad. Thanks

spriterx : thanks

IrisWriter : sorry. Especially since this update took a long time too. Yes, Kitty is adorable.

jadeDino : aw thanks. Yes, movies or reading can certain do that to writters block. You'll find out what will happen to Kitty and Piotr soon. : ) Yes, it was short. And this one isn't much better.

tfobmv18 : thanks. yes. Comes with the territory. There would be no story if they weren't all cryptic.

Kataragirl11 : yeah. It would be too easy if she could accuratly communicate the future. But yes, new love is nice especially involving Kitty. Its bound to be funny

Ondjage : she won't hopefully. Poor Piotr . . . to survie so much to be taken down by Kitty's cooking. That would be cruel.

Valnar : ueah it was short. Writting from Kurt's pov was . . . well difficult for me. Yeah, I love Cassie. She's a serious character that has the potential to be comic relief.

RogueNya : well read below and you will find out. :)

* * *

Rogue walked silently behind Kitty towards the common room with a large pot of soup in her arms. The young valley girl was practically skipping with excitement as she carried the tray of sandwiches. Behind her Jamie trailed with the lemonade and plastic cups and plates. Rogue shifted the heavy pot cringing as it made the cut on her hand more apparent.

"Rogue, are you sure you don't want me to carry it?" Jamie asked sounding anxious. Rogue glanced over at the smaller and . . . well scrawny boy. There was no way he would be able to manage the monstrous pot of chicken noodle.

"Ah'm fine, sug." She assured him wishing to be able to set the pot down. Rogue felt a surge of strength as the door to the common room came into view. She could already hear all the mutants just beyond. Kitty paused at the door waiting for Rogue and Jamie to catch up to her.

Suddenly Rogue was anxious; her cut hand was still bare. The mutants on the other side had been through enough without her putting them into a coma. Rogue jerked her head violently directing Kitty to go inside when it appeared that the short brunette was hesitating.

"Kitty, this is heavy." She hissed and ignored her surroundings and focused on the table not too far ahead that promised to be her salvation.

"Chere?" Remy's voice called from the other side of the room. Rogue ignored her Cajun and closed the distance between herself and the wonderful table. She dropped that pot on its surface and immediately removed her hands and experimentally flexed her hand.

Having relieved herself from the heavy burden, Rogue now took the time to look around at the mutants gathered in the room. She instantly recognized Remy coming towards her with a tall mountainous Russian in tow. Kitty began fidgeting with the sandwich tray and giving her meaningful stern glances. Some of the mutants had compete humanlike appearances, while others were more unique. They all looked tired and worn out.

Rogue's heart twisted in her chest imagining the horrors they experienced at the hands of man men. They had done a lot of good in freeing these innocent people, but there were still more mutants being held and tortured. They had to stop this from happening to anyone else. The x-men had to bring down this other establishment and bring Dorian home to his mother.

"Rogue, you should have gotten Remy. He would have carried dat for—" Remy said and came to an abrupt halt in both his movement and speech. His red eyes locked in on Rogue hand and specifically at the bandage. Rogue blushed from the attention . . . nothing escaped his careful observations. "What happened? Êtes-vous bien? (Are you aliright?)"

Rogue rolled her eyes. "Ah am fine. Seriously, Remy it's just a small cut." Rogue told him hoping to ease the overly concerned expression of her boyfriend's face. When had the playboy Casanova turned into such a softie? His worried pout was almost too adorable.

Piotr chuckled behind Remy, which seemed to remind the Cajun of his presence. "Piotr, have you met mon, chere?" he asked with a large proud smile on his face as he gesture to Rogue.

"No, I have not had pleasure of the meeting her again," he said in a quiet voice. Rogue smiled at the massive guy instantly liking him.

"Hello, ah'm Rogue," she said offered him her gloved hand. She watched in surprise as her hand completely disappeared in Piotr's hand shake. "Have you met mah friend, Kitty?" Rogue asked gesturing to the short brunette who gazed at their former enemy with wide friendly eyes. If Rogue had not been watching Piotr's face so closely, she would have missed the brief flicker of crimson on the man's cheeks as he shook Kitty's hand.

"It is pleasure the meeting you again," he said in his broken English. Kitty blushed wildly and gave a soft giggle. Remy came next to Rogue while she was distracted by the budding relationship and snaked his arm around her waist.

"It's really nice to seeing you again," Kitty said. Piotr gave another faint blush and turned back to his former comrade seeming to be a little embarrassed.

"I am happy to see you with girl. It had been getting very pathetic the . . . uh . . . drooling you were doing over her. Was that right? Drooling?" Piotr asked sounding uncertain of his choice of word. Rogue laughed and Remy pursed his lips.

"Yeah, that's right. Ya were droolin' over meh?" Rogue asked turning to Remy who did not seem pleased with the turn of the conversation.

Kitty giggled saying, "That's like so cute."

"Remy did not drool!" Remy said in his defense. Piotr smile from ear to ear, which was a heartwarming sight to see. Rouge wondered briefly on the horrors the silent guy had seen and experienced.

"Oh, but you did comrade. I find him many times going over kissy tape and looking over the file for the Rogue. Not mentioning all the times I was sent to fetch you from the school from watching the girl." Piotr said smugly; everyone but Remy started laughing at this. Rogue could definitely see how the two had been friends. There was friendship there that was honest and true. She hoped that the Russian would stay around for Remy and Kitty's sake.

"What's like a kissy tape?" Kitty asked looked confused back and forth between the three of them. Rogue had a good idea what Piotr was referring to so she decided to try and distract everyone from the subject.

"Kit, why don't ya help meh pass the food around before it gets cold?" she said and began assembling the paper plates.

"But, I want to hear about this tape." Kitty shot back. Rogue groaned and turned back to the group resigned to her fate. Remy was giving her a large smirk. Yep, without a doubt Rogue knew the tape Piotr was referring to.

"Remy liked to watch the tape of Rogue's attack on base. She made him unconscious with a kiss," Piotr explained eager to entertain the valley girl who was hanging on every word he said as if it were salvation.

"What? Are you talking about when . . . oh . . . so that's how she knocked Remy out then," Kitty said averting from naming the man who even still occasionally appeared as the star of one of Rouge's recurring nightmares.

"Ah . . . ah had no control over what ah did," Rogue said feeling embarrassed. It was completely illogical. After all, she kissed Remy quite frequently now. She also knew her argument was about as steady as new born colt. It was a weak explanation with many holes . . . for one she did not kiss anyone else while she was under his control.

"Whatever you say, chere. You know you _wanted_ to kiss dis Cajun. Remy's irresistible," Remy said squeezing her side and eyeing her lips in a hungry way. Rogue blushed before stepping out of his embrace. If she encouraged him there was no telling what sort of public display he might try next. Remy was a pusher. Constantly forcing back boundaries set for him.

"Wow, you've been like keeping things from me, Rogue." Kitty said in a dark tone.

"Uh . . . my memory was a little fuzzy afterwards. Ah did not even remember the kiss till after the New Orleans incident and by then . . ." Rogue explained trailing off. Kitty understood where she was going . . . after she got back from her little trip with Remy things had been too stressful with the whole Apocalypse thing.

Kitty seemed to understand that a change in topic was needed. "Uh . . . are you hungry Piotr? Rogue makes the best chicken noodle soup ever," she said.

"That would be nice, please." Piotr replied with a small shy grin.

Kitty smiled as she hurried to get him lunch. Rogue struggled to regain her composure feeling old wounds aching dully. She had worked tirelessly with the Professor to resolve her issues with all that had happened to her . . . all the betrayal. Most of the time she was completely fine having accepted the past with a determination to move forwards. However, Logan was right. Something about betrayal just sticks with you.

"Rogue," Remy said in a cautious voice as his hand sought out hers. Rogue snapped out of her daze to see not only her boyfriend giving her a worried stare, but also Piotr. She put on a smile she prayed was convincing.

"Ah'm okay. Just . . . thinkin' about the past that's all." Rogue assured. Remy's face slide back into his normal jovial expression, but Rogue knew him too well to buy it. She did feel better, her spirits lifted a bit the second his hand touched hers.

Kitty then rejoined the group with a bowl of soup and a plate with a sandwich in her hands. A glass of lemonade was tucked into the crook of her arm. It seemed the small girl was struggling with the items. Piotr moved to assist her and in the process they collided. Rogue and Remy watched with wide-eyed anticipation as the bowl of soup flew into the air and the sandwich plate fell and bounced to a stop on the floor. The lemonade spilt all over Kitty and Piotr as the Russian grabbed onto the valley girl's waist to keep her from falling. For the grand finally, the hot bowl of soup landed down on Piotr's back.

"Oh mah . . . are y'all okay?" Rogue demanded while Remy covered his mouth to stifle his laugh. Rogue scowled at him as Piotr set Kitty back on her feet.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay Piotr?! I am so sorry. I'm such a klutz! You should take off your shirt that's soup is hot," Kitty said in a quick frantic voice.

"It is okay. Are you unharmed?" Piotr asked after a quiet moment.

"Don't like worry about me, I'm totally fine. I'm worried about you . . . that soup had to be scalding. Do you need to go to the clinic?" Kitty insisted. Rogue could tell she wanted to do more, but was afraid of doing more damage. Rogue wondered if this is what Cassie had been talking about earlier.

"No, I am fine." Piotr assured and placed his hand on Kitty's arm to comfort her.

"Kit, Piotr probably needs another shirt. Why don't ya take him down to the storage room?" she suggested. A second later Rogue felt a vibrating in her back pocket.

"Oh, of course, that's a great idea Rogue," Kitty said sounding relieved as Rogue pulled her cell phone from her pocket. She frowned when she did not recognize the number. Her cell phone was not listed and only x-men had it. Still, she pushed the answer button and placed it to her ear.

"Hello?" she asked. Her tone must have been tense because Kitty and Remy froze to stare at her. Piotr caught on quickly and became quiet.

"_Rogue, it makes me smile to hear you,"_ an eerie voice purred on the other side. Rogue's felt her whole body stiffen and the hair on the back of her neck stood on end.

"Who the hell are ya?" she demanded sounding bolder than she felt.

"Rogue?" Remy said and placed his hand on her forearm.

"Who is it?" Kitty asked a second later. Rogue held up her hand to shush them.

"_That is not important now, love. I just wanted to say thank you for the wonderful work your team has done to my rival. All of their resources have been redirected to me. It will make my plans move much further,"_ his voice said in a calm slow voice. Rogue swallowed hard trying to force back down her lurching stomach.

"You planed for us to find that place. The papers left behind were not a mistake were they?" she asked.

His response was a short laugh. _"You are quite right. I don't make mistakes. I noticed you have not left the Institute premises for quite a while. Don't worry; they cannot keep us apart for long. I look forward to seeing you."_ He said and then the line went dead. Remy pulled her into his arms as Rogue began to shake.

"What's going on? Who was that?" Kitty demanded. Rogue shook her head trying to calm herself as Emma's spirit fueled her own fear making it almost impossible to think clearly. Emma had recognized his voice as the man who had let her die. Rogue could feel it through their connection. The lights to the common room flickered violently startling the freed mutants.

"Th . . . that was the sick twisted pervert who . . . who wants to experiment on meh. He w-wanted us to find that location. They were his _competition _who we just eliminated. He has mah private x-men cell number . . . he knows that ah'm stayin' inside the mansion," Rogue stammered. Remy's grip on her tightened and was almost painful, but it allowed Rogue to bottle up her rising panic. She needed to go to the Professor and tell him what was going on.

"Chere, are . . . are you okay?" Remy asked. His voice was cold and distant.

"He said that he's looking forward to seein' meh," Rogue said dropping the final bomb.

"I won't let him anywhere near you, chere. Rogue I will keep you safe." Remy growled. Rogue nodded, but a part of her knew that there was nothing he could do. The man on the phone sounded so sure of himself. He had a plan that he knew would not fail.

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Some more comical scene. Poor Piotr and Kitty. My favorite part is the ending. Our creepy guy strikes again! did you see that one coming? He wanted the x-men to close down the sister location, but why? If they are the competition who is in charge of the whole opperation? Well, this chapter has sort of gotten me back into the swing of this story. I was experincing crazy writter's block. Somethimes you just have to write through the difficult moments. I hope its over, and I hope you enjoyed this update. Next chapter: can the xmen keep Rogue safe? What will become of Kitty and Piotr's awkward beginnings? How about Remy and Rogue? Will they get closer in these rough time, or will things drive them apart? Please review! Seriously, review.


	30. Chapter 30

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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**Note to my readers:** okay right off I am sorry that it has taken me months to update! Sorry times a million! I worked like crazy all summer and well had barely enough time to eat and sleep let alone do anything fun like updating my story. I promise even when life interupts and things get in the way I will not abandon this story and will see it through to the ending. Again, sorry.

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TENaSeein' : aw thanks!

A Forgotten Fairy. .AKA- Fairy :yeah I have a lot of chapters. If I had known that there would be this many I would have written longer chapters in the beginning. Thanks. I'm happy that you are enjoying the story so far. Its nice to hear from someone who read from start to finish that their relationship does not seem like a rush job.

courtneykutie : Kurt is adorable. I need to work him back in a little more

edward's blossom :okay I'm updating now

edward's blossom : the maid outfit. Yep, a classic. Knowing french is helpful I add. Took it for years, but was never very good despite how much I love the language. I'm getting more rusty as more time passes since I studied, but I know enough to manage Remy broken French. I know how to say what I intend to have Remy say and use translators as conformation that I remember the correct accent mark of word order.

edward's blossom : thanks. I'm happy you liked it

Ondjage : yes Kitty is her own force alright.

Karma's Girl : thanks! I like the phone call too.

RogueNya : well I hope you stay guessing! ChamberlinofMusic : thank you. i'm happy you like it

tfobmv18 : thanks

jadeDino : thanks. I'm happy he's totally creepy

mylove24 : yeah Piotr filling them about remy being a love sick puppy is cute

AshmandaLC : yeap kitty and piotr are cute together

IrisWriter : if you want I can write out a shirtless moment for you

Valnar : thanks! I am quite fond of him . . . despite how utterly creepy he is

spriterx : thank you

coup fatal : okay I know you demanded ASAP . . . and a few months later is not ASAP. Sorry!!! summergirlforever : thanks for the comment.

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It was loud inside Professor Xavier's office. All of the x-men were in the small cramped room yelling back and forth while Rogue sat in the corner of the room as far from the others as possible. Remy was the only one who dared sit even remotely near her. He leaned against the wall two feet from her curled body. Rogue felt like a ticking time bomb. She was afraid and seemingly back into a corner. As soon as she told everyone who had called her cell phone the smothering began, and it did not take her long to lose her patience and quite loudly tell everyone to back the hell off.

Now instead of bombarding her with questions and declarations that "everything would be fine" everyone was circling the Professor like a flock of vultures. Rogue was only half listening to their rapid paced rambles. Everyone was trying to talk over the other unsuccessfully.

"We should trace that call," Scott demanded while simultaneously Kurt shrieked, "Vat are we doing to protect meine Schwester?"

"It's too late to try and trace it, but I could try and . . ." Kitty started, but was cut off by Wolverine loudly snarling, "Chuck we have to bump up security!"

"Would everyone calm down, please?" The Professor said softly. His words were completely drowned out. _Quiet_, a voice said softly but indisputably in their heads. Silence followed as Charles Xavier leaned back against his chair looking fully at ease. "Shouting over one another will get us nowhere, nor will panicking. First, our priority is to strengthen the Institute's defenses. Kitty, technology is your department so could you please go over the system looking for cracks or ways to strengthen it?" he asked. Kitty nodded solemnly. "Storm could you please go and explain things to the younger students. Press upon them the importance of always staying together . . . sadly even in the mansion." The weather witch nodded looking please to have something to do. One by one, the Professor gave the people before him tasks.

Calm and peace settled down upon Charles' office as mutants slowly left feeling more at ease with direction and purpose. After a period of time, Rogue lifted her head when the sudden silence shook her from her trance like state. Now only herself, Remy, the Professor, and Logan remained. All three men watched her closely with mixed expressions. Rogue knew she had to think things through and use logical and rational thinking to guide her through this calmly.

"My child, you do not have to be brave," Charles told her softly having heard her train of thought. His words . . . however kindly meant were what Rogue needed to snap back into herself. She stood with determination.

"No, ah do. Sitting here freaking out while he just comes for meh ain't gonna help at all. What can ah do Professor? If ah just sit here I'll just become a puddle of uselessness." Rogue explained. She would not be the girl who cringed in the corner waiting for something big and nasty to come and get her. Rogue would do anything and everything she could to ensure that if she went down it would be kicking and screaming.

The Professor starred at her with his eternally calm and expressionless face. Rogue often wondered at times like this how he could always keep such control over his emotions. Logan sat down on the edge of the Professor's desk crossing his arms over his chest. He seemed anxious probably wishing he was cracking some skulls, polishing off a bottle of brandy, or both. Rogue had seen him take out ten men with his right arm and claws while chugging from a brandy bottle in his left. Remy looked just as much like a caged animal as Logan despite how still and at ease he seemed to be reclining against the wall next to her. His eyes gave away the animal lurking just underneath itching to blow things and bad people to tiny bits. The two of them would be a frightening force together and Rogue shuttered at the thought. If the two men in her life ever put their differences about both being in her life aside and teamed up the world would be doomed.

"I have a suggestion that might one day prove to be life saving for you Rogue," the Professor said after apparent careful consideration. "I suspect that the man we are dealing with has a sort of gift that runs similar to mine and Jean's. I could teach you how to block him if he chooses to attack you through your mind." The Professor shifted in his chair and strummed his fingers pensively on the desk his eyes clouded by some unknown thought.

Frowning, Rogue said, "Ah know how to do that mind block thing . . . the brick wall. You've taught us all how to do that." At some point every student at Xavier's learned simple mind blocking techniques to keep a telepath out.

Charles' mouth quirked up into that rare regretful half smile that was unnatural on the telepath's face. That expression was always accompanied by something unpleasant. "I am afraid that to a high level or trained telepath those "brick walls" are more like cardboard. Few have the mental capabilities to keep out a telepath. I have been reluctant to tell you this, but in light of these recent events I feel it is my duty to teach you to protect yourself at your fullest capacities. You have the ability to keep any telepath out of your head if you so chose."

"Ah can keep a telepath out of mah mind? Why have ya kept this from meh?" Rogue demanded feeling her anger rise.

"For many reasons, Rogue," the Professor said with a small sigh. "It is your psyches that make entering your mind . . . challenging. They way you have organized them in your mind makes it still possible for me or any telepath to enter your mind without danger. With a little rearranging, it would be possible to use them as a barrier protecting your mind."

Rogue considered his words carefully, but her eyes were on Remy who was giving the Professor a piercing look. "You never answered Rogue's question. Why have you not told her about this?" Remy said accusingly. Logan stood from the desk and shifted his weight with uncertainty.

"What's with the secrecy, Chuck?" Logan asked not bothering to look at Xavier. If it were possible Logan looked even more angry than he had before . . . Rogue suspected that whatever the Professor's reasons were she would not like them and that Logan at least suspected what they were.

"I may not have been upfront with this information Rogue, but I will not outright lie to you. I kept this a secret because if I teach you this even _I_ will not be able to access you mind without your consent." The Professor explained while never altering the steady calm tone of his voice. Rogue's whole body froze suddenly understanding completely what he was trying not to say directly. Charles wanted to be able to enter her mind if she ever lost it again. If her powers ever got out of control, like they had when all the psyches took over, she was potentially a dangerous and unstoppable mutant.

Rogue was never one to leave things hidden. "So basically, if ah go bonkers again ya could not stop meh." The room took on an eerie stillness when she finished her statement. It was as if everyone was waiting tensely for the explosion. Rogue wanted to be angry with the Professor . . . she truly did. She hated people hiding things from her. It reminded her of all the internal wounds on her heart. However, she could understand his position. He was doing something wrong with the best intentions in mind. Rogue knew she had the potential to be more destructive than Magneto, Mystique, and Apocalypse because she had the ability if to be all of them combined at the same time. It did not make it right that he hid something like that from her, but it did make it understandable.

"Yes, Rogue if your powers develop or evolve beyond you capacity to handle them then I would no longer be able to enter your mind and help you reestablish control unless you allowed me." Xavier said confirming her statement.

"Chuck!" Logan snarled never having the stomach for secrets either. Rogue stood sharply from her seated position on the floor, demanding attention.

"Logan, its fahne," she said urgently. "Ah have a history of losing it, so it's only natural to try and keep safeguards in place for protection." Remy silently came to her side and placed a comforting arm on her shoulder.

"Chere?" Remy said questioningly not knowing what everyone was so tense over. Rogue gazed into his loving and concerned red on black eyes. She could never keep something secret from him . . . especially how dangerous she could be. There was a reason beyond her skin that many mutants in the mansion chose to keep a safe distance from her.

"Sugah, remember when ah attacked everyone with mah powers and stole everyone else's?" she asked. Rogue noted that Remy's eyes blazed a brighter red as he recalled their first kiss.

"Oui," Remy replied.

Inhaling a deep breath, Rogue prepared to tell him everything. "Well, that was not the first time. Mah powers surged a few years ago and ah lost mahself to mah psyches. Ah caused a lot of destruction and damage before Logan calmed meh down and the Professor entered mah mind to help meh drive them out. With Mystiques powers ah _became_ the people ah absorbed with no control over what they did with mah body or their powers. Ah could recall _any_ power ah ever absorbed and use them at the same time."

Relief was the only thing Rogue could feel when Remy's face did not shift into fear . . . or worse pitty. He simply listened to what she told him and accepted it without any visible judgment. They truly were cut from the same cloth. Remy understood what it was like to be a danger even to mutants. He had walked down that path. He had told her about the early years after his powers first manifested when anything he touched instantly became a ticking time bomb. Remy understood her like no one else ever did, or ever could.

Remy's gloved hand buried into her hair tangling her locks gently between his fingers. "You won't lose control, chere. If does voices give you any trouble Remy will bring you back, je promets (I promise)."

"Chuck, as much as I hate to agree with Gumbo, Rogue's not going to lose control again. She's stronger now. I brought her back once and if I have to I'll do it again," Logan said tensely. Rogue caught the subtle dig at Remy that he would be the one to save her if need be not the Cajun. No Father . . . no matter how unconventional liked to hear that another man planned on replacing them in protecting their daughter. Logan was a long way away from being comfortable and accepting Remy.

"Rogue is stronger than at those times and in excellent control," the Professor agreed with utter sincerity trying to pacify the overprotective men in Rogue's life. However, Rogue knew he still worried that one day that would not be the case. Logan and Remy might know her better, but the Professor knew how some days it was hard for Rogue to keep all the psyches at bay.

"What would ah have to do to block telepaths exactly?" Rogue asked.

Professor nodded in approval at her question. "As I said, it is simply a matter of the location in which you place the psyches. Currently, you file them all deep in a locked room in the center of your mind and your conscious surrounds them. I suggest you reverse the positions. If you surround your mind with the psyches then no telepath could get at you unless they wanted to risk insanity. They would have to wade through hundreds of personalities and countless memories to reach your mind."

Rogue did not really like the sound of that. "Won't that just make it easier for them to break out?" Rogue asked with uncertainty.

"No, you are assuming that the position within your mind matters to your control over them. It is a rather logical assumption that by burying them deep into the center of your conscious that it would be more difficult for a determined psyche to escape, but that is simply not how the mind works. You will have them same control over them if you reverse the positions," the Professor assured.

Rogue bit her lower lip in thought. What was the right decision? Was her own person safely greater than the possible threat she could pose to countless others? The Professor had good reason to be cautious of her own powers, but Logan was right. It had not been the Professor's powers that calmed the hurricane inside her mind that day. It had been the love and understanding from Logan that allowed her to regain herself. She believed Logan and Remy when they vowed that if she ever lost it again they would and could bring her back to reality.

"Will it hurt?" she eventually asked. The Professor smiled warmly and shook his head as if she were a young innocent child.

"Not at all, it may take a while for you to grow accustomed to the set up, but there will be no pain involved. While I am working you may feel a bit . . . odd for a moment or two. This will not take long," he explained as he directed his chair from behind the desk to wheel in front of her.

"Stripes, do you want us to leave?" Logan asked including Remy with himself. Rogue just offered him a small shake of her head as she pulled a chair over and sat down facing Xavier. She did not mind their presence at all . . . she actually welcomed it. She was always a little nervous about the Professor messing around with her mind.

Smiling, Charles said, "I promise I will not mess anything up during this process." Rogue blushed slightly at his words. She had complete faith in the Professor's abilities it was just . . . "Remy, would you mind holding Rogue's hand? I believe it would help her to relax."

"Chere, would you like dat?" Remy asked turning to her for conformation.

"Please," Rogue said and was dismayed that her voice sounded stressed. Remy kneeled down next to her. Rogue relaxed the instant Remy encircled her tinny hands in his larger ones. She always felt protected when he held her hand as if she was safe as long as he was touching her. Breathing deep, Rogue willed her mind and body to relax. She gripped Remy's hand tighter as she felt the Professor move past the surface of her mind and go in deeper.

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Okay. Again. Sorry for taking so long to update. I know months in between is a little exreme. This chapter gave me so much diffuclty in writting. I rewrote it completely three times (which did not help in me getting it out to you). I also suffered as massive dose of writter's block. We get a little insight into Rogue's mind and hopefully it will be enough to help Rogue fight this creepy enemy bent on taking her. I though the rivalry between Logan and Remy was cute. I was not trying to make the Professor eveil here . . . just overly cautious. In his mind he's worried about his visions of the future and thinking about Jean's eventual turn. Well I hope you all like the chapter. I will get started on the next one as soon as I finish up the new chapter for Last Chance. It wont take me long . . . like a few days at most I promise. I'mm try to get the next chapter to you sooner than that. Please review!


	31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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_A Forgotten Fairy. .AKA- Fairy_ : well I'm happy that you arn't sure if your angry with the prof. That's what I was aiming for. Yeah, Logan can be a bit posessive over his daughter. _  
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_papercreations__ : thanks. I'm quite pround of him. Sinister you say? Well you'll have ot wait and see. Oh, I think your refering to Trask. Plastic wrap? Like so that they can kiss? Interesting. The hankkerchief is not my idea. That's an old but goddie from the comics. Yea, I love that Kurt stole from Remy. _

_ChamberlinofMusic__ : thanks. Yeah its nice for everyone to protect Rogue. Sweet. _

_TENaSeein'__ : aw thanks. I'm happy you like my stories. It seemed like a__ Logan thing to do not like Remy attention with his daughter. I have every intion of inflicting the two of them together united over the common goal of Rogue upon the world. That will be interesting to see. I love Wovlerine nagging too. When it comes to Rogue he's just a big teddy bear. If Rogue ever got control over her powers completely she could sqash Phoenix like a bug. Heck she could be Phoenix with one touch. Oh, and normally I don't remove bad guys from the possible list, but it is not Charles' son, but that would have been a great idea . . . wish I had though of it. Sigh. _

_tfobmv18__ : thanks__nileena__ :_ Sadly I fogot too. I still remembered where I was going with it, but I had to reread my own chapters to refresh my memory. Yeah, I like that everyone got so emotional over Rogue. I figured that no telepath could actually handle all the psyches. I'm not even sure how Rogue manages to handle them

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_Rogue felt warm and safe . . . she always felt that way in his arms. She could feel the steady rise and fall of Remy's chest against her back as they lay against a sturdy oak in the park. Sighing, Rogue could not help but wonder what she did to earn such heaven. His skin was warm to the touch . . . as it always was . . . a side effect of his mutation._

"_Can we stay here forever just like this?" Rogue asked her lover and turned to look into his eyes. They fought long and hard to make it to where they were today. They faced obstacles that at every turn made their bond stronger. She was his saving grace and he was her very breath. _

"_Alright, you can wake up now Rogue." Remy said, but it was not his voice. _

"_What?" she asked. _

"Rogue, please wake up," the Professor said jolting Rogue from her dream. She was sitting in a chair in the Professor's office. How did she end up here? The memory of the past events came rushing back and Rogue recalled that the Professor was going inside her mind to rearrange the psyches. Her mind felt slightly different, the change was quite noticeable.

"Did somethin' go wrong? Ah wasn't supposed ta fall asleep was ah?" Rogue asked fear gripping her heart.

The Professor gave her an amused smile. "No, everything went quite fine. You were just extremely relaxed. Now, Rogue I am going to attempt to enter your mind." Xavier stilled in his chair and closed his eyes. The room became quiet in anticipation for the results. If he was trying to enter her mind, Rogue could not even feel it. Eventually, the Professor opened his eyes. Beads of sweat had collected upon his brow.

"Did it work, Chuck?" Logan asked speaking for the first time in a while.

"Yes, it did. Rogue's mind is a complete mystery to me. If anyone tried to delve in deeper the sheer volume of psyches would surely drive them insane," the Professor said.

"Welcome to mah life. Ah have to deal with them all in mah head," Rogue said looking deep into her long time mentor's eyes. The Professor gave her a grim smile.

"Yes, I know Rogue. I have spent a great deal of time trying to come up with a way to help alleviate the burden of your psyches. We can still try and make progress on controlling them, only now I will need your assistance to get past the barrier." Xavier slowly turned and wheeled himself back over to his desk. "I have some calls to make to some connections I have. Hopefully one of them can give us some information about our foe," he said with his back turned towards them.

Rogue stood to her feet with Remy's arm entwined around hers in case she needed the support. Rogue felt fine physically, but inside her mind everything was different . . . it was quiet disorienting. "Ah think ah'll go lie down for a bit." Rogue said out loud not certain who she was sharing the information with exactly.

"I've got to go give half-pint a hand with the security system, and someone needs to check up on our guests," Logan said as he stood to leave. "Stripes, if you need anything just holler and I'll be there before you're done saying my name." With that Logan made a quick getaway not being too comfortable with mushy declarations.

"Rogue," the Professors voice said as she and Remy approached the door.

Rogue could tell from the Professor's face that he wished to speak alone with her. He probably would have said it in her mind if he could. "Remy, why don't ya go on. Ah'll be right out, sugah," she told her overprotective boyfriend. Remy frowned, but left with no argument.

"Rogue, for what it's worth . . . I am sorry," he said in a low soft voice. Rogue knew that he was apologizing for many things. His lack of trust in her ability to handle herself, his inability to really help her with her powers when he had been able to help so many others, and most of all the fact that he knew she was in pain. The Professor knew how difficult Rogue found her mutation to live with, and he helped the best he could. For a man who wanted to save everyone, being helpless to help even one would weigh heavy on the heart.

"Nothin' ta be sorry for Professor. We all have to do difficult things at times because it's the right thing to do." Rogue assured. She had contemplated telling him Remy's theories about the possibility of control, but decided it could wait for another day. He had a big enough burden on his back, and Rogue had no intentions of adding to the load. He did that easily enough for himself. She offered him a heartfelt smile before exiting the room to join Remy by his side.

The instant she was next to him, Remy enveloped her into a tight hug. As long as she could be in his arms she could face anything. "Chere, everythin' okay?" Remy asked.

"Yep, everythin' is fahne, but ah'm exhausted," Rogue told him meaning it. It had been a long time since she felt so drained.

Remy's eyes brightened and sparkled as he said, "Well then, Chere, let Remy tuck you in." Rogue shrieked as the crazy Cajun swung her up into his arms and began carrying her towards her room.

"Put meh down ya, Swamp rat! And get yer head out of the gutter. Tuck meh in mah ass. Ah can walk ya know," she yelled hitting his arm softly yet repeatedly.

"Now, Rogue, behave. Remy's just goin' to make sure you are safely tucked in your bed. Just let moi take care of you." Remy chastised. It was the sincerity of his voice that made Rogue reluctantly let up on the hitting and accept that she was going to be carried all the way to her room.

"Fahne," she said trying not to blush.

When they reached her door Remy had no problem opening it and maintaining his hold on her perfectly. Upon seeing her warm and inviting bed, Rogue's eyes began to droop. Remy sat her down at the foot of the bed while he pulled down the sheets. Rogue could not even muster up a threat or complaint when he stripped off her shoes and plopped her down in the center of the bed. She did giggle when he actually tucked the covers under her body.

"Thanks, Remy." Rogue mumbled half way to dream land already. He paused in his motions to lean forward and planted a lightning quick kiss on her forehead.

"You are welcome, mon Coeur," he said and the husky tone of his voice sent shivers down Rogue's spine. Then Remy ducked under her bed.

"Cajun, what are ya doin'," Rogue demanded coming slightly out of her drowsiness. Instead of answering, Remy crossed her room and checked inside her closet. "Remy?!?" Rogue hissed in warning.

"Just looking for monsters," Remy said and smiled. For a brief moment, Rogue's body froze in complete terror. He had not been looking for imaginary monsters, or joking in the least. No, the monsters that plagued Rogue were very real. "Chere, you're safe. Please relax."

"Ah'm not really safe am ah?" she asked and wiggled from her binding until she could sit up. Remy looked so upset she almost wished she had just pretended not to be bothered and worried. He came back over to her bed and sat down next to her.

"You're safe as long as Remy is nearby. I won't ever let anything happen to you Rogue. Do you want moi to lay with you until you fall asleep?" he asked and ran his fingers through her hair. He just loved touching her hair. It was little innocent gestures like that which made Rogue love him even more.

"Until ah fall asleep? Can't ya just say with meh?" Rogue asked and was surprised by her boldness.

"Rogue, Remy really wants to go over de security system. Remy's a thief so he knows how to break into places. If there are any weak spots in de system Remy will find them and fix them. But, Remy won't go to do dat until your asleep." He promised. Rogue did not like the idea of him leaving her side for even a minute, but he had a good point. She was not the only person threatened by this monster . . . any of them were vulnerable.

Rogue curled up on her side and felt instantly safe the second Remy's body laid down behind her and he wrapped his arm around her waist. The heat of his body warmed her up like a blanket fresh out of the dryer. His wonderful scent enveloped her and lulled her senses to a relaxed state.

"Remy, I love you," she said as her eyes slowly fluttered closed once more.

Remy tightened his grip on her and his breath tickled her neck. Just as Rogue was about to plunge into sleep she heard him whisper in her ear, "Je t'aime aussi, et toujours"

* * *

Rogue groaned as conscious came back to her. She burrowed deeper into her blanket as if to hold onto her sleep for as long as possible. Once awake she could never get back to dreamland . . . something she always mourned over. Her room was just starting to darken with the setting sun and it was dead silent. Rogue sat up half expecting to find a pair of glowing red eyes staring at her, but no such luck. She was alone in her room.

"Remy?" she tentatively called out. When she was met with silence Rogue gave out a long sigh. Remy was probably going over every inch of the Institute with a fine tooth comb. Logan was most likely hovering over Kitty's shoulder growling while she worked on the security system since he knew nothing about computers. The mental image of that lifted her spirits and Rogue gave a soft chuckle. Poor, poor, Kitty. Rogue ripped the blanket off her body shivering at the sudden cold and got to her feet. She could not lie around all night too, plus she was hungry.

Rogue crossed her room towards her dresser and frowned at the mess that was her hair. Quickly she violently attacked her haystack hair taming it back into its proper style. She felt strange still wearing the same clothes and decided a change was in order. Rogue put on a pair of dark blue jeans, a black tank top, and a sheer light blue long-sleeved shirt. There had to be something she could do . . . help the new mutants . . . she would even settle for helping Jamie with his homework. Doing something was better than nothing.

Just as she was about to exit her room her cell phone gave a sharp high pitching ring from her bed. Rogue quickly found it hidden under her pillow. Glancing at the number Rogue dropped her phone back onto the bed as her heart began slamming against her chest. All she could do was stare at the cell with horror while it continued to ring. After a minute the ringing stopped, but Rogue dared not move. Was he watching her? Rogue's head shot up to her windows to find the blinds firmly shut. The ringing started again . . . same number. Rogue's hands were visibly shaking as she reached down and picked up her cell phone. Slowly, she flipped it open and placed it to her ear.

"_I'm happy you answered my call. Someone else is happy too_," the familiar voice announced.

"What do you want from meh?" Rogue sobbed.

The sound of sniffling could be heard coming from the phone. "_Rogue? Rogue_?" a small young voice asked with desperation. Rogue's heart twisted in her chest.

"Dorian? Are yah okay, sugah?" she demanded clutching the phone as close to her ear as possible.

"_Rogue, I'm scared_," the young mutant said crying.

The crying diminished until there was silence on the line. "Dorian? Dorian!?!" Rogue yelled at the phone.

"_A fascinating mutant that one is. Too bad for him we have gathered all the useful information we can out of him. The nature of his powers make further experimentation useless. I personally don't care about him, but you do don't you love_?" the monster asked. Rogue was openly crying shaking with fear and anger.

"He is a child!" she said trying to reason with a mad man.

"_You can save him Rogue. Let's call it a trade. You for him. I'll even drop him off in front of his Mother's house safe and sound if you'll come to me_." He promised with the amusement not even hidden in his voice.

"What do ah have to do?" Rogue snapped.

"_I am so very pleased with your cooperation. Do you know where Bayville park is_?" he asked. Rogue mumbled an affirmative and sat down on her bed since he body could no longer support her weight. Her whole body was convulsing uncontrollably . . . her teeth were even chattering together as if she were cold. "_That's good, very good. Now, I want you to go there to the playground. I'll have Dorian there and we can settle this problem all nice and clean. Don't tell anyone, I _will_ know if you bring backup and poor Dorian would have to suffer then. Can you leave now_?"

"Yes . . . it won't be easy leaving, but ah can manage," Rogue said. Her mind was already formulating a plan. It would be very difficult to escape with so many people working on the security.

"_Excellent, I look forward to seeing you my love_," he said and then hung up the phone.

This was a trap, and Rogue knew it. Still she had to go . . . Dorian was counting on her. If this man did have telekinetic powers, than she could not involve the others. They would never let her go if she told them. Rogue grabbed her leather jacket before walking over to the window and pushing it open. It was quiet outside except for the sound of insects and the occasional breeze. Rogue climbed over the ledge and lowered her body till only her hands supported her.

Letting do, Rogue dropped and landed painfully on her feet shooting pins and needles into her legs. Glancing around, she was relieved that no one had discovered her in the act of leaving yet. Rogue quickly made her way towards the garage careful to be as quiet as possible. If Logan was out patrolling then she would certainly be caught. She spotted Kurt on the mansion roof looking for intruders so she emerged herself into the cover of shadows.

The garage door creaked loudly as Rogue eased it open, and she winced at the sound. Still no one had discovered her, and that made Rogue even more worried. This was turning out to be too easy. Logan would be in a rage once he learned that she had slipped out of the Institute with ease. Rogue was quite familiar with the garage having worked on Logan's motorcycle with him about a hundred times. He promised to buy her one once she graduated from her online classes and became an official instructor at the Institute. That would probably never happen now, and Rogue struggled not to mourn for her life. If it meant that Dorian would be alive and safe with his Mother than it was more than worth it for her, and Rogue took comfort in the thought.

Even in the dark, Rogue had no problem finding Logan's toolbox. She opened it up and carefully felt around for his keys. He never kept then on himself since he would certainly lose them. Rogue was one of the few people who knew how irresponsible Logan was with his belongings. He most certainly would have even lost his x-men communicator if the device did not have a tracker inside. If Logan knew what she was doing he would kill her for stealing his precious baby motorcycle to go meet with an evil madman bent on experimenting on her.

"Chere?" Remy said behind her. Rogue froze with the keys in her hand . . . of all the people who had to catch her why did it have to be Remy? She would have preferred Logan, because she would hate herself forever for what she was about to do. Hiding the keys in her fist, Rogue turned slowly to her boyfriend with a smile on her face.

It was dark so all Rogue could see were Remy's eyes, but she guessed he was probably frowning. Intense light blinded Rogue for a moment before her sight adjusted to the light Remy had turned on. True to her guess, he was frowning at her and glaring into her eyes as if they held the answers he was seeking. "Rogue?" he called her name out like it was a question.

"Remy," Rogue said in greeting. She settled her mind and emotions so as not to alert his empathy that anything was wrong, but he probably still knew. Remy crossed over to her side in a stiff poised manner as opposed to his normal fluid movements.

"Chere, what are you doing here?" Remy asked reaching out to hold her to him. Rogue allowed Remy to take her into his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck to keep Logan's keys hidden from sight.

"Ah woke up and ya weren't in mah room so ah came lookin' for ya," she lied hating herself for the hatful words that spilled from her lips. Remy's arms around her waist tightened and Rogue tried not to wince. If he kept holding her that hard she would end up with bruises.

"Rogue, why are you lying to Remy?" he asked and Rogue could hear the pain in his voice. Why did he have to catch her? He was already going to be agony over what she had to do, but he did not deserve this. For a moment Rogue thought about tell him everything, but then a picture of Dorian's face came to mind.

"Ah ain't lying, sugah," Rogue said and lifted off her toes to bring her face closer to his. Rogue knew that he would never refuse her . . . not even if he suspected that she was trying to pull something. His eyes widened as she inched her lips towards his and Remy pulled her closer to his body and effectively meeting her lips. Rogue put all she had into that kiss . . . all of her love for him and all of her regret. Remy kissed her back just a feverishly. She managed to hold off her mutation trying to give him as much time as possible . . . one last gift.

When her powers kicked on Rogue held on to Remy and lowered them together to the ground as her love lost consciousness. When Rogue finally let him go her eyes were blurry from her tears. "Je suis désolé mon amour. Pardonnez-moi s'il vous plait (please forgive me)" Rogue said to the sleeping Remy. Rogue removed her jacket and placed it under his head like a pillow. She reached into his jacket and pulled out a deck of cards, which Rogue then slipped into her back pocket.

Rogue slowly wheeled Logan's motorcycle towards the Institute gate and started the engine before punching in her key code. She had to hurry since someone would have noticed that she opened the gates. Climbing onto the motorcycle Rogue felt a bit of her fear evaporate having successfully made it out of the school. She took off leaving behind her home, loved ones and life. Rogue was headed into a trap, but vowed not be taken without a fight. If she was lucky she could escape with Dorian with the help of Remy's powers and psyche . . . that is if he ever stopped the string of French profanities he was throwing at her in her mind. The trap was waiting, but Rogue prayed that the ace up her sleeve would be enough.

* * *

Gosh! What a long chapter. There was so much going on in this one. Can I just say the thought of Remy tucking her in is adorable? Anyone else wish Remy LeBeau would come tuck them in at night? Sigh. And our bad guy strikes again! Yes, I know not terribly original that he uses the kid as bait for a trap that the good guy knows is a trap . . . but well I like the oldies. They're cliche because their good. And poor Remy and Rogue. Remy was probably happy to get a kiss though. Logan is going to kill Rogue when he finds out she stole his motorcycle. All around a lot of emotion and drama in this one. Since I started this story I have changed this scene so many times. Originally Remy and Rogue would get into a fight and then rogue would get the call and steal Logan's motocycle. Logan would discover the missing motocyle and accuse remy. They would fight until they realized that Rogue had taken it. Sigh. I really like that one, but didn't want to have Rogue and Remy fight so . . . Should I have gone that way for the humor rather than the romantic yet sad departure? well please let me know what you think. Please review!


	32. Chapter 32

Disclaimer: I do not own the x-men

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XSuicuneX : Yeah. Rogue would be scarry to face. I'm right there with you

TENaSeein' : thanks.

Wanda W : Yeah. thinking about it this was the best way to go about it. The idea of a Remy Logan fight was really tempting though . . .

Lupa Dracolis : Hum . . . that's a good point. Never though of that nileena : I'm happy you liked it this way

papercreations: yeah. I had a fan girl sigh with Remy checking for monsters. Yeah, Rogue is being stupid. Good thing that won't stop Logan . . . once he figures out she's missing. Rogue does have that heor complex where she thinks she can handle things on her own. Interesting. Never checked out that show. I remember when it first came out. I thought it looked interesting. A handkerchief would be much softer than plastic. I'm not giving any clues as to who the bad guy is . . . whether he came from the evo-series, the comic, cartoon, movie, or myslef. You'll just have to be surprized when it is finally revealed, and I promise eventually it will be.

Jadedsnowtiger : thanks  
drumgirl1923 : thank you

tfobmv18 : thanks. I'm happy the ending was liked.

Shadow Hand Zealot : yep. He's pretty calculating. Thanks

Dholefire : I'm happy that I ended up picking that ending. Everyone seems to prefer it. Lol. Yeah it would have gone down something like that. I loved the idea, and managed to work some of it in . . .

A Forgotten Fairy. .AKA- Fairy : well I'm happy then that I chose this over the alternative chaprer idea. Yeah . . . Logan is going to kill this guy when he tracks him down

Fostersb : Yeah. I understand. I had to go back and re-read what I had written myself. I'm happy you liked how it ended.

* * *

Bayville Park had always been a peaceful serene place for Rogue. Now, it was all shadows and hidden malice just lurking under the cover of trees. The wind had died, and in its place was a stillness that settled into the bones making Rogue feel on edge. Clouds had gathered making the full moon appear to be a foggy silver sphere in the sky. Rogue thought about how many times she had come to this park to read stories from Poe or Sonnets under the shade of the tall oak trees. She stood hesitantly at the park's entrance, half hoping that the x-men were rushing to rescue her from having to do the right thing . . . that she would not have to do this and someone else could save the day.

What could she do? Rogue hugged her body tight trying to keep warm as the night's chill seeped through the layers of her clothes and into her skin. She owed it to that little boy to do everything in her power to save him. Still, Rogue hesitated having lost her nerve on the bike ride over. The conviction she had experienced in her room had faded and fear was slowly replacing it. The odds were against her . . . even with Remy's mutation, which was weakening slowly.

"Rogue, this ain't about you. This is about Dorian," she spoke out loud. Closing her eyes, Rogue pictured the little boy she remembered Dorian to be. He had been scared when they met with those big soulful eyes. Rogue sighed and lowered her hands down to her side. She could do this . . . and even if she went down she had to try. Rogue opened her eyes, balled her hands into fists, and plunged into the darkness of the park.

Rogue kept alert listening intently and scanning the scenery looking for the ambush that was undoubtedly hiding in wait. She seemed to be alone as she made her way towards the center of the park where the playground was located. The actual paved pathway was a winding lazy course, so Rogue made her own path cutting through the trees towards where she prayed Dorian was safe and sound. She climbed up a steep hill and the playground came into view.

It was impossible to see into the shadows created by the jungle gym. There was an overall lack of movement that had Rogue high on alert. It was too still and quiet . . . she could see the trap, but the question was where were the people waiting to swing the trap door closed? Rogue crouched down towards the ground slowly sneaking her way towards the playground. She pulled out Remy's deck of cards from her back pocket and removed them from the package keeping the ready playing cards in her hand.

"Rogue? Rouge?" Dorian called from the jungle gym area. He was safe . . . scared, but still safe. She broke her cover sprinting towards where she heard his voice. How had he gotten away from his captor? "Rogue, I'm scared," he cried out to her.

"It's okay sugah, ah'm here," she assured. He was hiding inside the fort like structure. Rogue crouched down trying to find him in the darkness. He had to be terrified stiff not to be rushing to her. "Dorian, where are ya? Come here, its okay." she told him letting her voice take on a soothing tone.

"Rogue? Rogue?" Dorian said.

"Ah'm right here, Dorian. Come on we gotta leave." She said a little firmer than she had been before. The last thing she wanted to do was try and crawl into that fort to get him. It would be much safer if he came to her instead of her entering that enclosed place.

"Rogue, I'm scared," he said again. With his words Rogue froze into place. Dorian was not here at all . . . it was a recording. She had not seen or heard him sneak up on her having devoted her attention to saving Dorian, so she was surprised when the needle pierced her neck.

Her attacker was shrouded in a black cloak shielding their identity. Rogue rolled away struggling against the sudden drowsiness weighing down her limbs. "Where is Dorian?! We had a deal!" she snarled while struggling to get to her feet. She had one card left to play . . . a wild card that might just blow up in her face . . . literally.

"Rogue? Rogue?" the recording played again.

"We do have a deal, sweet Rogue. Once I have you safe in my custody then I will send Dorian home. I am a man of my word," the voice from the phone said from beneath the cloak. It was a horribly normal voice . . . soothing almost. It was that much horrible because of that fact than his voice was not some sick twisted sinister sound.

Rogue was sleepwalking heading towards an involuntary dreamlike state. The lids to her eyes were impossible to keep open. The man before her was responsible for so much pain and suffering. If she could take him out then it would be over. She had to act fast because soon she would lose consciousness and then she would be nothing more than another one of his victims . . . a lab rat to be prodded and poked as his pleasure. Rogue refused to calmly allow him to usher her to that fate. She was an x-men, and a human being with dignity.

"Rogue, I'm scared," the words of the recorded message burrowed into her heart making it ache.

Rogue allowed her body to buckle slightly to her knees feigning that whatever he had injected her with was working quiet well. "Don't worry; I will take good care for you. You're safe now," he crooned as he approached her. Rogue smiled with pleasure . . . after this the x-men would not be able to scrape enough pieces to identify his body. She had never intentionally killed someone before, but Rogue refused to think about it. The odds were she would end up blowing herself into a million pieces while taking out this monster.

When he touched her shoulder, Rogue used Remy's powers to charge the whole cloak. The garment light up with a magenta glow. Rogue pushed him away from her having charged it with more than enough energy. She rolled away and blindly kept going in a vain attempt to get away.

_Boom!_ The explosion shook her very bones. It was over . . . whether she managed to kill him or not she was through. The effort it was taking to remain awake was too much for her now. Rogue let the promise of sleep lull her. She was vaguely aware of a pain in her side, but it was distant and impossible to focus on. She was probably injured from the explosion . . . shrapnel most likely.

"Your efforts are quiet admirable, my love. I expected no less, but you don't have to worry about trying to fight me off any longer," he whispered into her ear. However, Rogue could not move she was too deep in the fog of sleep. She had tried . . . given it her best.

* * *

Sleep had not been restful. A nagging voice kept repeating itself _Get up! You must get up!_ It was a shallow and unnatural sleep. Something had been forgotten . . . something that would be important when conscious returned. There was also slight pain creeping into the mind and curling around it like a blanket. Something was important . . . _someone_ was important . . . someone who needed help.

"Get up!" a voice snarled. It was hard . . . the fog of sleep still had a death grip on its prey. "Wake up or you'll be in a world of pain," the voice insisted again. It was an animal like sound. When Remy opened his eyes he was a little startled to find Wolverine hovering above him with a firm grip on his shirt.

"Remy's awake," he said groggily. What was he doing on the garage floor? "Rogue!" he shouted springing to his feet and nearly knocking Wolverine over in the process.

"Where is she, Gumbo?!? Where the hell is my bike!" Wolverine snarled unleashing his claws to give strength to his words. Remy was frantic with dread. Rogue was an idiot . . . a sexy wonderful idiot. The mad man must have contacted her again and convinced her to go to him somehow.

"She's gone," Remy croaked out. His very soul ached at her absence and loss. Wolverine slashed his claws where Remy had been standing a second ago. He would be dead from that blow alone if his reflexes were not so sharp.

"_Where the hell is she_?" Wolverine snarled looking less and less human.

"Remy came into de garage and found her tryin' to leave. She kissed moi and then you woke moi up. Rogue's gone to him . . . dat crazy man. He had to have contacted her somehow and made promises to her. He lured her out of de mansion, and if we don't leave soon he'll have her," he explained pulling out the keys to his motorcycle from his coat pocket.

"Give me the keys to the motorcycle and then got get the keys to the x-van and follow me," Wolverine snarled with his hands stretched out waiting for the keys. Was dis homme serious?

"Non, dis is Remy's bike," he snapped and climbed onto the motorcycle.

"I need a motorcycle. Just to give me the _damn_ keys!" Wolverine yelled. Remy started the engine. He would probably not make it out of the garage without the harry Canadian attacking him . . . plus he needed his bloodhound nose to find Rogue. He could compromise . . .

"Climb on, homme," Remy said and gestured to the available space behind him.

"I ain't riddin' behind you. I'll drive," Wolverine insisted. Remy sighed, but got up off the bike. The things he did for the woman he loved. Wolverine took his place on the motorcycle and Remy took a seat behind him gripping the sides of the bike to keep on. There was no way he was putting his arms around the short harry man's waist.

Wolverine gave him no warning as he took off with his bike driving in high pursuit of Rogue's scent trail. Remy eventually gave in for his own safety and placed his hands on Wolverine's shoulders. Every so often Wolverine would slow down as if trying to catch her lingering scent on the wind. Remy was a little surprised when they came to a stop at Bayville Park. The silhouette of Wolverine's bike could just be seen parked ahead. Remy jumped off and sprinted towards the other motorcycle. Where was his chere?

Wolverine pulled out his communicator and contacted the Professor as he stalked with a purpose into the Park with Remy trailing behind him. "Chuck, Rogue's gone. He must have called her. I tracked her to the park . . . yeah . . . no, Gumbo's with me . . . she absorbed him so she ain't defenseless . . . that's probably a good idea . . . no I ain't waiting. Hopefully she's still here and Gumbo and I can save her . . . if he has her then I hunt him down and cut him into pieces so small he'll look like hamburger meat . . . see you in ten," wolverine said and then hung up his communicator.

Remy was silent behind Wolverine. Why would she go to the crazy mad scientist? When he found Rogue, Remy was going to smother her in kisses and then never _ever,_ _ever_ let her out of his sight again. He prayed to God that they were not too late. It had been a long time since Remy LeBeau made an honest attempt at a prayer . . . he hoped that God would for once listen to his pleases. Rogue had to be safe. If he and Wolverine were too late . . . well then the Canadian would have to wait in line to beat the man to a pulp. They would find Rogue . . . there was no question about it.

They reached a playground and Wolverine stopped near some fort like structure. "She was here . . . I smell something chemically in the air and that guy. Her footprints end here . . . he carried her away from here." Wolverine said in an eerily calm voice.

"We have to follow, homme," Remy urged. The sound of metal claws bursting through flesh was heard and Wolverine pulled out his weapon of choice.

"When I find this bub I'm going to take his head off," Wolverine vowed.

"We'll kill him together homme, now what do we do about Rouge?" Remy asked. There had to be a way to find her . . . there was no other possibility. Remy knew that between him and Rouge father figure they would get her back. He did not like Wolverine and probably never would, but on this they were in perfect agreement. There would be no peaceful talking when they caught up with this guy . . . only blood.

* * *

Yes, I know that it is a short chapter. I had a bit of trouble with this one. Some things I liked other areas . . . I wanted Rogue to hestiage and have second thoughts. I think it humans for anyone faceing something like that to be afraid. So were you surprised that Dorian calling out to Rogue was a recording? If you go back thoese are the same words Dorian said to Rogue on the phone. Yes, it was a recording then too. Then we had a pov switch to Remy. I idea of Remy and Logan arguing over who would drive the motocycle was too funny to resist. Poor Remy. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. The next one I promise will be longer. Please review!


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: I do not own the xmen

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rosewolf44 : thanks j

adeDino : yeah. I don't update nearly as much as I should

martshi3 : thanks

ColorCoated : thanks

ChamberlinofMusic : yeh. She is very much a mother hen.

Shadow Hand Zealot : thanks

Dholefire : I don't think I really know how to end a chapter without a cliffhanger.

A Forgotten Fairy. .AKA- Fairy : yay! I'm happy that some one was surprised he was a recording. I have never revealed the identity of the bad guy. He is still a mystery. Yep, when Remy and Logan find Rogue they'll never let her out of their site for a good long while.

Kiss-This2010 : thanks. Yes, Logan and Ororo are together, but they sort of keep their relationship extremely private. I cannot imagine either or them groping each other in from of their former students. tfobmv18 : thanks Courtney Summers : thank you Wanda W : yeah. I'm going to keep his identity as close as possible for a while. thanks for the wondeful review

Fostersb : thanks. I will reveal his reasons, but keep in mind he's also a crazy psychopath

* * *

While Rogue has been sleeping she had been safe. In her dreams, Rogue had been able to touch freely without restraint, and she had used that ability without hesitation. However, the second she opened her eyes the wonderful feelings died and fear took their place. Rogue woke up lying on a cold metal table staring up at an overhead medical light. It was turned off keeping her in partial darkness. When she tried to move, Rogue realized that she was strapped down to the table with thick metal bands on her wrists and ankles. Furthermore, she was practically naked with only her underwear and bra on for clothing. Over her body was a thin white sheet that offered no warmth and there was no barrier between her flesh and the cool surface of the examination table.

The desire to scream was almost overwhelming as Rouge took in her surroundings. She was being held in a lab caught by that horrible monster. Rogue wanted to cry more than anything. However, she knew better than to call attention to herself since at the present she appeared to be alone, and she preferred to keep it that way. She looked around the medical room taking in her surroundings just as Logan had taught her. Logan . . . Logan was going to kill her for getting herself caught. Rogue tugged on the metal bands holding her in place. She had to get away and get a hold of the x-men somehow.

"I see you are awake. I am pleased. I was worried that you were injured worse than was my assessment. I had to put some stitches in your side," that unmistakable voice said from somewhere in the room. Rogue lifted her head in a vain attempt to see him. It was difficult to move around the way she was held down to the table. Then she heard his footsteps on the tile floor they sounded loud and booming.

"Stay away from meh!" Rogue yelled. His only response was to continue moving forward and to chuckle softly. When the man responsible for kidnapping her and so many others came into view Rogue was more than surprised. He looked so . . . so normal with brown hair and brown eyes. Nothing about him screamed psycho . . . an average Joe. The man was neither handsome nor ugly just really plain. He wore a white button up blouse, a blue tie, kakis pants, and a white lab coat.

"It seems you have learned a new trick. Your mind is a complete mystery to me . . . all I can get is the screaming masses of the people in your head, quite fascinating. Did Charles Xavier teach you that?" he asked. Rogue chose to glare at him wishing she could kill him with her eyes alone. "It has been difficult getting you to me. Your friends tried so hard to keep you from me . . . and in the end you come willingly to me," he said sounding pleased as if she had somehow complimented him.

"Ah didn't come to ya willingly ya creep. Where is Dorian?" she snarled at him jerking violently on the table in a vain attempt to break free. She hated this man he made her skin crawl with his honest looking face and charming smile.

"I made a promise, Rogue and I kept it. Dorian was delivered in front of his house safe and sound the moment you were secured in my custody," he said. Rogue felt some of her terror evaporate with those words. She was willing to take whatever good news came her way. She collapsed back onto the table suddenly feeling weak. "He was no longer of any use to me. We performed all the useful tests and extracted some of his DNA. That boy certainly was not an extremely interesting mutant. Not like some of the other specimens in my lab. Certainly not like you," he said with pride. He reached out to touch her and Rogue had to will herself to hold still. If he touched her skin she could knock him out and use his powers to escape. The Professor would help her later remove him from her mind.

His hand hovered a few inches above her face and then he quickly drew his hand away. "It's a shame really," he said cryptically. However, Rogue figured her was talking about his inability to touch her. He looked frustrated and angry that he could not touch her, and for once Rogue was happy for her mutation. He frowned one more time before leaving the medical table she was strapped on and disappearing out of sight.

Although Rogue could not see him she could hear him moving about the room. He was making a lot of noise making Rogue grow more afraid by the minute wondering what he could possibly be doing. Her heart was pounding her chest. Her pulse racing to the point she could hear it steadily in her ears. "Doctor Litment, please come to lab twenty six. The patient is awake and we need to prep for the procedure," the monster in the room said out loud.

"No!" Rogue screamed now struggling in panic. The brown haired man returned with a syringe poised in his hand he was wearing latex gloved, which would protect him from her poison skin.

"Don't worry this procedure is simple and it is for your own good. Normally, I do not bother with painkillers on patients, but you are no mere patient," he said and he gripped her tugging arm and the needle pierced her skin.

"Don't touch meh!" Rogue shouted. She could feel whatever he injected into her veins. Her arm ached dully around the injection site and her arm began to feel cold. The aching faired briefly to an intense pain before subsiding and leaving her with numbness in her arm, which spread quickly throughout her body. "What did you do to meh?" Rogue asked sounding calmer and relaxed.

"Relax my love. This just ensures you will be calm and feel no pain," he explained with a smile. He reached up with his gloved hand and touched her cheek. Rogue screamed at her body to move away from his touch, but it refused to cooperate. She tried to scream and tell him to get his filthy paws off of her, but her lips would not move. She was frozen in her body looking at his evil face. He then lifted his hand and closed her eyelids leaving Rogue in the darkness conscious of what was going on around her, but unable to move and shout. Then the "procedure" began.

* * *

Remy was in a foul mood and Wolverine beside him was not much better. Logan has followed Rogue's scent trail straight to a small private runway where they were met with a dead end. There was no way to track her down and gut the man who had taken her. Whatever plane they had taken was long gone, and Rogue was flying to who knows where. They had nothing.

Wolverine growled fiercely before unleashing his claws and turning the metal fence in front of him into small chunks on the ground. Remy wanted to follow suit and blow everything around him back to the Stone Age. He just barely managed to restrain himself. The Professor could not track her since Rogue had not used her mutation. It picked up that she had used his borrowed power at the park before she was taken, but nothing since. The rest of the x-men team were standing just behind them having arrived on the scene too late to be of any use. Kitty and Jean were both trying to comfort Kurt who seemed to be in a similar state as the rest of the men in Rogue's life.

"Vhy would she go to him? It doesn't make any sense!" Kurt yelled losing his temper. Remy clenched his jaw tighter. Cyclops appeared from inside the x-van and approached the team.

"That was the Professor. Dorian just showed up in front of his Mother's home unconscious. He's being taken to the hospital, but it appears he's mostly fine," Cyclops explained. Suddenly, it all made sense. That monster has used the boy to lure Rogue to coming to him. It was surprising that he kept his word. Typically when bad guys made promises they were never kept. Remy knew this from experience. Why did Rogue have to have such a good heart?

"We may not know where Rogue is but we can research this runway. Find out who owns it and see if that gets us a connection to help find Rogue," Cyclopes instructed. "For now we should regroup at the mansion and try and come up with a plan."

"What plan?" Wolverine snarled. "Stripes has been taken by a psychopath and you are saying that we can come up with a plan?" The whole team had their eyes on Wolverine wondering when he would snap. Scott Summers seemed to be unfazed by Wolverine's furry.

"Well, getting angry and cutting things up is not going to find Rogue. We won't stop until we bring her home. She is an x-men and she is family to us all. I know you're beyond upset, but we have to act now or else any trail there might be will get cold," Cyclops said in a stead and confident voice. Remy may have disliked ol' one –eye, but his tone was comforting. It was his utter confidence that the team could get Rogue back that allowed Remy to walk past the other x-men and be the first to climb into the van. Everyone soon followed his example. Wolverine was the last to get in the van mutter obscenities under his breath the whole time.

* * *

It was dark and it was cold when Rogue finally woke up shivering on a small twin bed curled up in a tight ball on her side. She was still numb from whatever was done to her. It was impossible to tell what that monster had hoped to accomplish with all the needles and the poking and prodding. She did not feel any different. There had been no pain, but Rogue was certain that without that first inject it would have been agony to endure. It was still unpleasant to be strapped down and conscious unable to see what was being done. She could feel the pressure from their gloved hands and the push as the needles forced their way into the skin. She could hear them talking and using words she did not understand. Rogue willed her body to obey her commands and move, but it was still heavily under the influence of whatever she had been given.

She wanted to be home in her bed held tight in Remy's arms. Silent tears streamed down her face as Rogue thought about the love of her life. It seemed cruel to finally find love and have it snatched away so quickly. That was the way her life seemed to work. Just whenever things started going well for her the rug would be pulled from under her feet and Rogue would be left confused and dizzy trying to figure out what happened and how deal with it. When her mutation first appeared and she joined the Brotherhood because she believed the x-men had attacked her. Again later when she learned that Mystique had orchestrated the whole thing to get Rogue to join her team. When Rogue's powers went out of control and she accidently absorbed Mystique who she thought was her best friend Risty. Then Rogue had to deal with Mystique being her mother. Mesmero using her to free Apocalypse. Rogue was tired of people controlling and changing her life as they saw fit. She was sick of being someone's victim.

Trembling, Rogue forced her body to a sitting position. It was so dark that Rogue could not see her own hand waving in front of her face. Her hearing told her that she was alone in the room . . . well almost alone. She could feel Emma the ghost attached to her. Perhaps Rogue could get her new friend to help her. Maybe she could save herself and help everyone else in this forsaken place. She patted herself down looking for anything out of the ordinary. Someone had clothed her at some point . . . well if a hospital gown could be considered clothing. Slowly, Rogue placed both her feet on the floor. A moment later she moved onto the floor and felt the cold tile floor against her hands as she kneeled down. She carefully crawled until she found a wall. It did not take long for Rogue to explore the small room she was being held in at the moment. The concrete walled room could be no bigger than roughly seven feet long and five feet wide. There were no windows and the door was solid iron.

"Emma . . . Emma, ah know ya can hear meh. Can ya open the door?" Rogue asked her hand lightly resting on the ice cold metallic surface. Rogue waited and nothing happened. "Emma, please?" Rogue tried again knowing this was her only chance.

The metal door gave a soft groan and Rogue heard the distinct sound of the metal bolt releasing from its lock. Rogue stepped back knowing there was no handle on this door. Light filtered in from the cracked open door and Rogue blinked rapidly as the light stung her eyes. She grabbed the door and eased it open enough for her head to peer out. She could see a plain simple hallway with rows of doors like her own going on in both directions. The prison like hallway was empty, but Rogue knew better than to be too hasty. It was best to take a moment and assess the situation before acting.

"Thank you, Emma," Rogue whispered. There were no obvious cameras so Rogue moved a bit further into the hallway. She counted forty doors, twenty evenly spaced out on both sides. Rogue moved to the first door and examined the structure. She had to figure out how to unlock these doors . . . and not pay attention to the sound of a man crying coming from the other side. The door had a number key pad.

Rogue quickly and silently crept down the hall with her back pressed against the wall. If someone figured out she had escaped it was over. She needed to somehow get word to the xmen where she was . . . and she had to figure _that_ out too.

"Emma . . . can you get these locks to open as well?" Rogue asked.

"Security breach! Security breach! A subject has escaped from the containment cell!" a male voice shouted. Rogue whipped her head around and saw a tall man dressed in a security guard outfit coming her way. He was speaking into a walkie-talkie with a billy stick in hand. Rogue moved into a fighting stance as the overhead lights began flashing and the low scream of an alarm blasted her ears. Rogue knew she was officially in over her head. She needed help . . . she needed her team, the xmen.

* * *

well I finally update again! Sorry! This chapter has been half finished for quite a while I just needed to end it. We get some Rogue and some of Remy and Logan. Not a funny chapter at all. There will be some humor in the upcomming chapter, but I felt this needed to be pretty somber. I hope you guys like it and arn't too mad about the cliffhanger I'm leaving you in. Oh, and from now on I will reply to each review separatly instead of one big mass reply in the begginning of each chapter. I will read and respond to each review still. Now you'll ger replies faster. Please Review!


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